Israel’s military on Tuesday launched the deadliest strikes on the Gaza Strip since the agreement of its ceasefire with Hamas, killing hundreds of people and threatening to compromise the increasingly fragile truce.
The Israeli military said it was “conducting extensive strikes” against Hamas throughout Gaza, aimed at “the release of all our hostages — living and dead,” the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.
“From now on, Israel will act against Hamas with increasing military force,” it said, with the Israeli military later issuing evacuation orders to several neighborhoods across the enclave.
The health ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza, whose figures the World Health Organization has previously said it considers to be reliable, said hospitals across the enclave had received the bodies of at least 404 people killed, with more than 560 injured. It added that people were still buried under rubble, with recovery efforts underway.
Dr. Muneer Al-Boursh, the ministry’s director-general said “most of the victims” were women and children as he called on Gaza’s residents to donate blood.
Tuesday’s strikes put the two-month-old ceasefire on shaky ground, although neither Israel or Hamas have explicitly said they considered the current ceasefire to be over.
Still, Hamas accused Israeli officials of having violated the terms of the truce.
“Netanyahu and his extremist government have decided to overturn the ceasefire agreement and are exposing the prisoners in Gaza to an unknown fate,” Hamas said in a statement.
