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Netanyahu Orders ‘Powerful’ Gaza Strikes as Hostage Remains Dispute Strains Ceasefire

Israel says Hamas breached the U.S.-brokered truce by returning previously recovered remains.

Overview

  • Israeli warplanes struck targets across Gaza after Netanyahu’s directive, with Gaza health and civil defense authorities reporting at least 81 to around 100 fatalities.
  • Hamas postponed a planned handover of a newly recovered hostage body, citing Israeli violations of the truce announced earlier this month.
  • Israel accused Hamas of staging a recovery and handing over partial remains identified as Ofir Tzarfati, whose body had already been retrieved in 2023.
  • An Israeli official said troops came under fire in Rafah and returned shots, a claim Hamas disputed as mediators worked to prevent escalation.
  • Egyptian forensic teams and the ICRC continued search and transfer efforts, and the IDF later said it was returning to the ceasefire even as tensions persisted.