Gaza (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Gaza’s civil defence agency reported on Wednesday that overnight air strikes resulted in at least 50 casualties in the Palestinian territory, following an Israeli military operation targeting multiple sites after an attack that resulted in a soldier’s death.
As reported by AFP, agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal described the strikes as
“a clear and flagrant violation of the ceasefire agreement.”
The civil defence reported that 22 children, along with women and the elderly, were among the victims, and approximately 200 people were injured.
“The Israeli strikes targeted tents for displaced people, homes and the vicinity of a hospital in the Strip.”
What caused the latest Israeli air strikes in Gaza?
Israel launched air strikes on Tuesday following allegations that Hamas attacked its troops in Gaza and breached the truce.
A military official said soldier Yona Efraim Feldbaum was killed in Rafah when an engineering vehicle was hit by “enemy fire”.
“A few minutes later, several anti-tank missiles were fired at another armoured vehicle belonging to the troops in the area,”
the official said.
How did Trump respond to the Israeli military action?
Trump defended Israel’s response on Wednesday, but added that “nothing’s going to jeopardise” the truce.
“They killed an Israeli soldier. So the Israelis hit back. And they should hit back,”
Trump told reporters on Air Force One during his tour of Asia.
What was Hamas’s statement regarding the Rafah incident?
Hamas stated that its fighters had
“no connection to the shooting incident in Rafah”
and reaffirmed their commitment to the US-backed ceasefire.
Hamas announced it would postpone returning another hostage’s body, expected on Tuesday, citing Israeli “escalation” as a barrier to the search, excavation, and recovery efforts bodies.
What is the dispute over the return of the hostages’ bodies?
Israel, on the other hand, accuses Hamas of reneging by not returning the remains, but the Palestinian group says it will take time to locate those buried in Gaza’s ruins.
According to Netanyahu’s office, Israeli forensic examination confirmed that Hamas had actually handed over partial remains of a hostage, whose body had already been returned to Israel approximately two years earlier.
Israeli government spokeswoman Shosh Bedrosian claimed that Hamas orchestrated the discovery of the remains.
