BBC News : At least 33 Palestinians were killed in a series of Israeli air strikes in Gaza, according to the territory’s Hamas-run Civil Defence agency and hospital officials.
Israel carried out the strikes in response to what it said were violations of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz accused Hamas of attacking Israeli soldiers in Gaza on Tuesday, and breaching the terms on returning the bodies of deceased hostages. Hamas claimed it had “no connection” to the attack and insisted it was committed to the ceasefire deal.
US leader Donald Trump maintained “nothing” would jeopardise the ceasefire, but added that Israel “should hit back” if its soldiers were targeted.
The Israeli strikes hit homes, schools and residential blocks in Gaza City, Beit Lahia, al-Bureij, Nuseirat and Khan Younis.
A spokesman for Gaza’s Civil Defence agency told the BBC that rescue teams were “working amid extremely difficult conditions due to continuous bombing and lack of equipment”.
“Some of the missing are still under the rubble, and we fear the death toll will rise,” he said.
A brief statement put out by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Tuesday evening said he had ordered “forceful strikes” by the military but did not specify his reasons.
However, Katz said Hamas had crossed “a bright red line” by launching an attack on Israeli soldiers in Gaza on Tuesday.
“Hamas will pay many times over for attacking the soldiers and for violating the agreement to return the fallen hostages,” he warned.
An Israeli military official said the Hamas attack took place “east of the Yellow Line”, which demarcates Israeli-controlled territory inside Gaza under the ceasefire deal.
Israeli media reported that troops in the southern Gaza city of Rafah had come under anti-tank missile and sniper fire on Tuesday afternoon, while Palestinian media reported Israeli artillery shelling in the area at the same time.
After the Israeli military carried out air strikes in Gaza on Tuesday evening, witnesses reported powerful explosions in several parts of the territory, including Gaza City in the north and Khan Younis in the south.
