Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the Israeli military to “immediately carry out forceful strikes in the Gaza Strip,” his office said in a statement, signaling the Gaza ceasefire deal is about to collapse.
Israel is claiming that its forces in Rafah came under attack, and Palestinians on the ground reported hearing gunfire and strikes in the south, but the circumstances of the fighting were unclear. Israel currently controls about 58% of Gaza’s territory, and Netanyahu has reportedly decided to take over more territory.
Netanyahu’s statement also came after Israel accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire deal over claims that it was delaying or staging the recovery of the bodies of deceased Israeli hostages. But before the agreement was signed, Israeli officials acknowledged that the bodies would take time to find, and CNN cited officials who said some remains may never be found.
Israel has also impeded efforts to recover more bodies by refusing to allow Turkish and Qatari teams to enter the Strip and help locate and retrieve remains, according to two Arab officials speaking to The Times of Israel. The initiative would have also involved representatives from Israel, the US, and Egypt aiding in the effort.
In response to Netanyahu’s announcement, Hamas has said that it has postponed the planned handover of another body due to Israeli “violations.” Hamas’s military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, said any Israeli escalations “will hinder search, digging, and retrieval operations of the bodies, which will lead to a delay in recovering the bodies.”
While there has been a de-escalation in Gaza, Israeli forces have continued launching attacks since the ceasefire deal was signed on October 10, killing at least 94 Palestinians in that time, according to numbers from Gaza’s Health Ministry. Israel has also not allowed the agreed-upon number of aid trucks to enter Gaza.
Comments from President Trump have also made clear that Israeli officials are eager to restart the full-scale genocidal campaign, and would do so if he gave the word. It remains unclear how the US will respond to Netanyahu’s announcement and planned escalation.