The bombings followed “Hamas’s repeated refusal to release” the hostages, according to Israel. Hamas’s health ministry reported 330 deaths in Gaza.
Unprecedented Israeli strikes since the ceasefire came into effect on January 19 left at least 330 dead in Gaza on Tuesday, March 17, according to Hamas’s health ministry. The Islamist organization accused Israel of “torpedoing” the truce.
“The Health Ministry has recorded more than 330 deaths, mostly Palestinian women and children, and hundreds of wounded, dozens of whom are in critical condition” following these strikes, the director general of hospitals in the Gaza Strip, Mohammed Zaqout, told Agence France-Presse. Among the victims was Major General Mahmoud Abu Watfa, head of the Interior Ministry for the Gaza Strip, AFP learned from two Hamas sources in the Palestinian enclave. Hamas controlled the police as well as Hamas’s internal security services in Gaza.
In a joint statement posted on Telegram, the Israeli army and the Internal Security Agency announced that, “in agreement with the political echelon, the Israel Defense Forces and the Internal Security Agency are carrying out extensive strikes on terrorist targets belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip.”
The bombings, ordered by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defense Minister, Israel Katz, “follow Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages and its rejection of all proposals it has received from U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and mediators ,” according to a statement from the Israeli government. “Israel will now act against Hamas with increased military force ,” it said. According to an Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the strikes are aimed at Hamas’s civilian and military hierarchy, and the offensive will last “as long as necessary . “
The White House consulted
The Israeli Defense Force also announced that there would be no schools on Tuesday in Israel, in areas bordering the Gaza Strip.
In response, Hamas, which has ruled the enclave since 2007, accused Israel of deciding to “torpedo” the truce. “Netanyahu and his extremist government have decided to torpedo the ceasefire agreement, exposing the prisoners in Gaza to an uncertain fate ,” the Islamist movement wrote in a statement, referring to the hostages. Hamas also called on the UN Security Council to convene urgently and adopt a resolution to force Israel to “cease the aggression” and withdraw its troops from the entire Gaza Strip.
Israel consulted with the US presidency before launching strikes on the Gaza Strip on a scale unprecedented since the truce in the Palestinian territory took effect in January, the White House said Monday evening. “The Trump administration and the White House were consulted by the Israelis about their attacks in the Gaza Strip tonight ,” presidential spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told Fox News, adding that, “as President Trump has made clear, Hamas, the Houthis, Iran – all those who seek to terrorize not only Israel, but also the United States – will pay a price . “
Negotiations at a standstill
On Sunday, Israel announced that it was sending negotiators to Egypt to discuss the hostages with Egyptian mediators. The day before, Benjamin Netanyahu had “instructed” his negotiators “to prepare for the continuation of discussions” in view of the second phase of the truce, according to his office, in order to obtain “the immediate release of 11 live hostages and half of the dead hostages . “
Torn apart by the mediating countries (Qatar, Egypt, and the United States), the truce agreement came into effect on January 19, after fifteen months of war triggered by the unprecedented attack by the Palestinian Hamas against Israel on October 7, 2023. During the first phase of the truce agreement, which expired on March 1 , Hamas returned 33 hostages, including the bodies of eight people, and Israel freed approximately 1,800 Palestinian detainees. Today, this agreement is in jeopardy, with the warring parties digging in their heels and accusing each other of blocking it.
Hamas is demanding to move on to negotiations on the second phase of the agreement, which it says provides for a permanent ceasefire, the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the reopening of aid crossings, and the release of the remaining hostages. Israel, for its part, wants the first phase extended until mid-April and is demanding the “complete demilitarization” of the territory and the departure of Hamas to move on to the second phase.
The October 7 attack in southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,218 Israelis, mostly civilians, according to an Agence France-Presse tally based on official data and including hostages who died or were killed in captivity. Of the 251 people abducted in the attack, 58 remain hostages in Gaza, 34 of whom have been declared dead by the Israeli military.
In response, Israel vowed to annihilate Hamas and launched a devastating offensive in the Gaza Strip that has killed at least 48,572 people, mostly civilians, according to Hamas health ministry data, which the UN considers reliable, and caused a humanitarian disaster.
