Israel said on Wednesday it remains committed to the U.S.-brokered ceasefire in Gaza, even after launching a series of retaliatory airstrikes that local health officials said killed 104 people, including 46 children and 20 women, in the deadliest escalation since the truce took effect earlier this month.
The bombardment followed the death of an Israeli soldier on Tuesday in what Israel described as an attack by Hamas gunmen inside the “yellow line” buffer zone established under the ceasefire agreement. Hamas has denied responsibility for the incident.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strikes were “a firm response to a clear violation,” but insisted Israel still backed the ceasefire deal negotiated by U.S. President Donald Trump on October 10, ending two years of war triggered by Hamas’s 2023 assault on southern Israel.
“We want to ensure that the goal President Trump and we agreed on, disarming Hamas and demilitarizing Gaza, is ultimately achieved,” Netanyahu said during a visit to a southern Israel base where U.S. troops are monitoring the truce.
Israel’s military said it had conducted airstrikes on 24 targets across Gaza, including a Hamas commander allegedly involved in the October 2023 attack on a kibbutz, as well as weapons depots and tunnels. Another strike near Beit Lahia, where Israel said weapons were stored, killed two people, according to medics.
In the Nusseirat refugee camp, residents said an overnight strike flattened the home of the Abu Dalal family, killing everyone inside. “The sounds of explosions and planes made us feel as if war had started again,” said Ismail Zayda, 40, who has been living in tents in western Gaza City with his family.
Footage from the scene showed a young boy in a wheelchair crying as relatives’ bodies were loaded into a truck for burial.
The Hamas-run Gaza government media office condemned the strikes as “a systematic campaign of misinformation and lies aimed at covering up Israel’s crimes against civilians.”
Despite the violence, Trump downplayed fears that the ceasefire could collapse. “They took out an Israeli soldier, so the Israelis hit back, and they should hit back,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One.
“Nothing is going to jeopardize the ceasefire. Hamas is a very small part of peace in the Middle East, and they have to behave.”
Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, one of the mediators of the truce, said the attacks were “very disappointing and frustrating,” warning they risked undermining progress toward lasting stability.
Under the ceasefire terms, Hamas released all living hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, while Israel withdrew most of its troops from Gaza and paused its offensive. Hamas also agreed to hand over the remains of dead hostages, though Israel accuses the group of delaying compliance.
Wednesday’s escalation has exposed the fragility of the truce and the unresolved issues that continue to cloud prospects for lasting peace, including Hamas’s disarmament, Israel’s security guarantees, and Gaza’s future governance.
Source: Reuters
Written By Rodney Mbua
