At least eleven dead after Netanyahu orders 'powerful' strikes on Gaza despite ceasefire deal

LAST UPDATE | 15 hrs ago

AT LEAST ELEVEN people were killed and four others wounded in Gaza after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered “powerful strikes” on the territory, a move likely to shatter the ceasefire agreement that came into effect on 10 October. 

Gaza’s civil defence agency said at least eleven people had been killed in the strikes, including one “on a civilian vehicle on Al-Qassam Street in Khan Yunis” and another on a family home.

Netanyahu has accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire deal by not returning the remains of dead hostages by a specified deadline, despite the group and the Red Cross insisting search efforts were underway but delayed by the difficulty of digging through the rubble in the devastated territory.

Israel has also claimed that Hamas had been firing on its forces in Rafah in southern Gaza, which the group denied. 

“Hamas affirms that it has no connection to the shooting incident in Rafah and affirms its commitment to the ceasefire agreement,” the group said in a statement.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed the group would “pay a heavy price” for the alleged attacks.

“The terrorist organisation Hamas will pay a heavy price for attacking IDF soldiers in Gaza and for violating the agreement to return the bodies of the hostages,” Katz said in a statement.

“Hamas’s attack today on IDF soldiers in Gaza is a crossing of a bright red line, to which the IDF will respond with great force,” he added.

Earlier, Netanyahu had ordered his military to carry out intense strikes on the Gaza Strip after accusing Hamas of violating the US-brokered ceasefire.

Israeli government spokeswoman, Shosh Bedrosian told journalists today’s strikes were being carried out “in full coordination with the United States, with (US) President (Donald) Trump and his team”.

Israeli authorities said the last set of remains returned by Hamas were from a person whose body was already returned, not those of the hostage they expected to receive. 

Hamas was due to return the body of another person this evening, but following Netanyahu’s order it has now postponed the exchange. 

“We will postpone the handover that was scheduled for today due to the occupation’s violations,” the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement, adding that any Israeli “escalation will hinder the search, excavation, and recovery of the bodies”.

Israel today accused Hamas of “staging” the retrieval of the body of a hostage. 

“The Hamas terrorist organisation summoned representatives of the Red Cross and staged a false display of discovering a deceased hostage’s body,” a military statement said.

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The International Committee of the Red Cross told AFP its team was present “in good faith” at the site following a request by Hamas.

“The ICRC team at this location were not aware that a deceased person had been placed there prior to their arrival, as seen in the footage,” it said.

“Our team only observed what appeared to be the recovery of remains without prior knowledge of the circumstances leading up to it.”

An Egyptian team and heavy equipment, including an excavator and bulldozers, entered Gaza on Saturday to help search for the hostages’ bodies, part of efforts by international mediators to shore up the ceasefire.

Today’s strikes come after Israel already killed at least 94 people and injured nearly 350 in Gaza since 10 October. 

On Sunday, Hamas accused Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement after its army struck the central Nuseirat refugee camp on Saturday night.

The Israeli military claimed it targeted fighters associated with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group who it said were planning to attack Israeli troops, which the group denied.

On 19 October, Israeli attacks killed at least 36 people, including women and children, according to local health authorities, after Israel accused Hamas of killing two soldiers. 

Since the ceasefire agreement came into effect, there has been a steady procession of high-profile US officials visiting Israel, which has been seen by many as an effort to ensure Netanyahu adheres to the truce. 

Last weekend’s strike hit just a few hours after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio left Israel. 

US Vice President JD Vance told Fox News today that he believed the ceasefire would last, despite “little skirmishes”. 

“We know that Hamas or somebody else within Gaza attacked an IDF soldier. We expect the Israelis are going to respond — but I think the President’s peace is going to hold.”

On the ground in Gaza today, 60-year-old Abdul-Hayy al-Hajj Ahmed told the AFP news agency he was afraid the war would start again because of the mounting pressure on Hamas.

“Now they accuse Hamas of stalling, and that is a pretext for renewed escalation and war,” he said.

“We want to rest. I believe the war will come back.”

Israel’s far-right national security minister accused Hamas of stalling the release of the remaining bodies.

“It is time to break its legs once and for all,” Itamar Ben Gvir wrote on X.

With reporting from AFP and Andrew Walsh

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