Israeli strikes in Gaza kill 50, rescuers say, after Hamas accused of killing Israeli soldier

No less than 50 Palestinians had been killed in a wave of Israeli strikes in Gaza on Tuesday evening, the Hamas-run Civil Defence company and hospitals say.

Israel carried out the strikes in response to what it mentioned had been violations by Hamas of the US-brokered ceasefire deal.

Israel’s defence minister accused Hamas of an assault in southern Gaza that killed an Israeli soldier on Tuesday, and of breaching the phrases on returning deceased hostages’ our bodies. Hamas claimed it had “no connection” to the assault and insisted it was dedicated to the ceasefire deal.

US President Donald Trump maintained “nothing” would jeopardise the ceasefire, however added that Israel ought to “hit again” when its troopers had been focused.

The Israeli strikes hit houses, colleges and residential blocks in Gaza Metropolis and Beit Lahia within the north of Gaza, Bureij and Nuseirat within the centre, and Khan Younis within the south.

A Civil Defence spokesman informed AFP information company that not less than 50 individuals had been killed, together with 22 kids, and round 200 others had been injured.

In Gaza Metropolis, witnesses described seeing “pillars of fireside and smoke” rising into the air as explosions shook a number of residential areas.

Three girls and a person who had been pulled from the rubble of the al-Banna household’s house within the southern Sabra neighbourhood, the Civil Defence mentioned.

Within the city Bureij refugee camp, 5 members of the Abu Sharar household had been killed in a strike on their house within the Block 7 space, it added.

And in Khan Younis, one other 5 individuals had been killed when plane focused a car on a street north-west of the town, in keeping with the company.

The Civil Defence mentioned its rescue groups had been “working amid extraordinarily troublesome situations” and that it feared the loss of life toll would rise as a result of some lacking individuals had been believed to trapped below rubble.

A short assertion put out by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s workplace on Tuesday night mentioned he had ordered the navy to hold out “forceful strikes” in Gaza however didn’t specify his causes.

Nevertheless, his defence minister mentioned Hamas had crossed “a shiny pink line” by launching an assault on Israeli troopers in Gaza on Tuesday.

“Hamas pays many instances over for attacking the troopers and for violating the settlement to return the fallen hostages,” Israel Katz warned.

On Wednesday morning, the Israeli navy introduced a reservist soldier, Grasp Sergeant Yona Efraim Feldbaum, was killed.

A navy supply mentioned the assault happened within the southern metropolis of Rafah “east of the Yellow Line”, which demarcates Israeli-controlled territory inside Gaza below the ceasefire deal.

Sgt Feldbaum was killed when one of many automobiles of a navy engineering crew that was dismantling an underground tunnel route within the southern metropolis of Rafah was hit by hearth from “terrorists within the space”, in keeping with the supply.

“A couple of minutes later, a number of anti-tank missiles had been fired at one other armoured car belonging to the troops within the space. No accidents had been reported,” they added.

Hamas issued a press release denying that its fighters had attacked Israeli troops and condemning the Israeli strikes.

“Hamas affirms that it has no connection to the taking pictures incident in Rafah and affirms its dedication to the ceasefire settlement,” it mentioned.

“The legal bombardment carried out by the fascist occupation [Israeli] military on areas of the Gaza Strip represents a blatant violation of the ceasefire settlement.”

The group’s navy wing in the meantime mentioned it might postpone the return of a hostage’s physique it had recovered on Tuesday because of what it known as Israeli “violations”.

The US performed down considerations that all-out hostilities might resume.

On board Air Drive One, President Trump informed reporters: “As I perceive it, they took out, they killed an Israeli soldier. So the Israelis hit again and they need to hit again.”

“Nothing goes to jeopardise” the ceasefire, he mentioned. “You need to perceive Hamas is a really small a part of peace within the Center East, and so they need to behave.”

US Vice-President JD Vance earlier mentioned that the ceasefire was “holding” regardless of what he described as “little skirmishes” between the 2 sides.

On Tuesday afternoon, Israel’s prime minister had pledged to take unspecified “steps” in opposition to Hamas after the group handed over yesterday a coffin containing human stays that didn’t belong to one of many 13 deceased hostages nonetheless in Gaza.

Netanyahu’s workplace mentioned forensic assessments confirmed they belonged to Ofir Tzarfati, an Israeli hostage whose physique was recovered by Israeli forces in Gaza in late 2023, and that this constituted a “clear violation” of the ceasefire deal.

The Israeli navy additionally launched footage from a drone that it mentioned confirmed Hamas operatives “eradicating physique stays from a construction that had been ready prematurely and burying them close by” in japanese Gaza Metropolis on Monday.

“Shortly afterwards,” it added, the operatives “summoned representatives of the Pink Cross and staged a false show of discovering a deceased hostage’s physique.”

Hamas rejected what it known as the “baseless allegations” and accused Israel of “in search of to manufacture false pretexts in preparation for taking new aggressive steps”.

The Worldwide Committee of the Pink Cross (ICRC) later condemned what it known as the “pretend restoration”, saying it had attended the scene “on the request of Hamas” and “in good religion”.

It went on: “The ICRC crew at this location weren’t conscious {that a} deceased particular person had been positioned there previous to their arrival, as seen within the footage – basically, our function as impartial middleman doesn’t embody unearthing of the our bodies of the deceased.

“Our crew solely noticed what gave the impression to be the restoration of stays with out prior data of the circumstances main as much as it.

“It’s unacceptable {that a} pretend restoration was staged, when a lot relies on this settlement being upheld and when so many households are nonetheless anxiously awaiting information of their family members.”

The ceasefire settlement brokered by the US, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey is meant to implement the primary stage of Trump’s 20-point Gaza peace plan.

It mentioned Hamas would return its 48 dwelling and deceased hostages inside 72 hours of the ceasefire taking impact on 10 October.

All 20 dwelling Israeli hostages had been launched on 13 October in alternate for 250 Palestinian prisoners and 1,718 detainees from Gaza.

Israel has additionally handed over the our bodies of 195 Palestinians in alternate for the our bodies of the 13 Israeli hostages up to now returned by Hamas, together with these of two overseas hostages – certainly one of them Thai and the opposite Nepalese.

Eleven of the lifeless hostages nonetheless in Gaza are Israelis, one is Tanzanian, and one is Thai.

On Saturday, Hamas’s chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya mentioned the group was going through challenges as a result of Israeli forces had “altered the terrain of Gaza”. He additionally mentioned that “a few of those that buried the our bodies have been martyred or now not keep in mind the place they buried them”.

Nevertheless, the Israeli authorities insists Hamas is aware of the areas of all of the our bodies.

All however one of many lifeless hostages nonetheless in Gaza had been among the many 251 individuals kidnapped throughout the Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, throughout which about 1,200 different individuals had been killed.

Israel responded by launching a navy marketing campaign in Gaza, throughout which greater than 68,530 individuals have been killed, in keeping with the territory’s Hamas-run well being ministry.