Israel launched airstrikes throughout the Gaza Strip early Tuesday, killing not less than 404 Palestinians, together with ladies and kids, in response to hospital officers. The shock bombardment shattered a ceasefire in place since January and threatened to totally reignite the 17-month-old conflict.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the strikes after Hamas refused Israeli calls for to alter the ceasefire settlement. Officers mentioned the operation was open-ended and was anticipated to increase. The White Home mentioned it had been consulted and voiced help for Israel’s actions.
The Israeli navy ordered individuals to evacuate japanese Gaza, together with a lot of the northern city of Beit Hanoun and different communities additional south, and head towards the middle of the territory, indicating that Israel may quickly launch renewed floor operations.
“Israel will, any further, act towards Hamas with growing navy energy,” Netanyahu’s workplace mentioned.

The assault through the Muslim holy month of Ramadan may resume a battle that has already killed tens of hundreds of Palestinians and induced widespread destruction throughout Gaza. It additionally raised questions in regards to the destiny of the roughly two dozen Israeli hostages held by Hamas who’re believed to nonetheless be alive.
A senior Hamas official mentioned Netanyahu’s resolution to return to battle quantities to a “demise sentence” for the remaining hostages. Izzat al-Risheq accused Netanyahu of launching the strikes to try to save his far-right governing coalition and known as on mediators to “reveal information” on who broke the truce. Hamas mentioned not less than 4 senior officers had been killed in Tuesday’s strikes.
There have been no studies of any assaults by Hamas a number of hours after the bombardment, indicating it nonetheless hoped to revive the truce.
The strikes got here as Netanyahu comes beneath mounting home strain, with mass protests deliberate over his dealing with of the hostage disaster and his resolution to fireplace the pinnacle of Israel’s inner safety company. His newest testimony in a long-running corruption trial was canceled after the strikes.
The principle group representing households of the captives accused the federal government of backing out of the ceasefire, saying it “selected to surrender on the hostages.”
“We’re shocked, indignant and terrified by the deliberate dismantling of the method to return our family members from the horrible captivity of Hamas,” the Hostages and Lacking Households Discussion board mentioned in a press release.
Palestinians examine the injury at Al-Tabi’in College in central Gaza Strip following an Israeli airstrike, Tuesday, March 18, 2025.
AP Photograph/Jehad Alshrafi
Wounded stream into Gaza hospitals
A strike on a house within the southern metropolis of Rafah killed 17 members of 1 household, together with not less than 12 ladies and kids, in response to the European Hospital, which acquired the our bodies. The lifeless included 5 kids, their dad and mom, and one other father and his three kids.
Within the southern metropolis of Khan Younis, Related Press reporters noticed explosions and plumes of smoke. Ambulances introduced wounded individuals to Nasser Hospital, the place sufferers lay on the ground, some screaming. A younger lady cried as her bloody arm was bandaged.

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Many Palestinians mentioned they’d anticipated a return to battle when talks over the second section of the ceasefire didn’t start as scheduled in early February. Israel as a substitute embraced another proposal and minimize off all shipments of meals, gasoline and different support to the territory’s 2 million Palestinians to attempt to strain Hamas to simply accept it.
“No one desires to combat,” Palestinian resident Nidal Alzaanin instructed the AP by telephone from Gaza Metropolis. “Everybody continues to be affected by the earlier months,” he mentioned.
Gaza’s Well being Ministry mentioned not less than 404 individuals had been killed within the strikes and greater than 560 had been wounded. It revised its confirmed depend after saying earlier Tuesday that 413 had been lifeless and 660 wounded. Rescuers had been nonetheless looking the rubble for lifeless and wounded because the strikes continued. It was among the many deadliest days of the conflict.

U.S. backs Israel and blames Hamas
The White Home sought responsible Hamas for the renewed preventing. Nationwide Safety Council spokesman Brian Hughes mentioned the militant group “may have launched hostages to increase the ceasefire however as a substitute selected refusal and conflict.”
An Israeli official, talking on situation of anonymity to debate the unfolding operation, mentioned Israel was hanging Hamas’ navy, leaders and infrastructure and deliberate to increase the operation past air assaults. The official accused Hamas of making an attempt to rebuild and plan new assaults. Hamas militants and safety forces rapidly returned to the streets in latest weeks after the ceasefire went into impact.
Netanyahu’s workplace mentioned the Israeli chief held safety consultations with senior officers. It didn’t present additional particulars.
Talks on a second section of the ceasefire had stalled
The strikes got here two months after a ceasefire was reached to pause the conflict. Over six weeks, Hamas launched 25 Israeli hostages and the our bodies of eight extra in trade for practically 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in a primary section of the ceasefire.
However since that ceasefire ended two weeks in the past, the perimeters haven’t been capable of agree on a means ahead with a second section geared toward releasing the 59 remaining hostages, 35 of whom are believed to be lifeless, and ending the battle altogether.
Hamas has demanded an finish to the conf;ict and full withdrawal of Israeli troops in trade for the discharge of the remaining hostages. Israel says it is not going to finish the battle till it destroys Hamas’ governing and navy capabilities and frees all hostages — two objectives that might be incompatible.

Netanyahu’s workplace on Tuesday mentioned Hamas had “repeatedly refused to launch our hostages and rejected all provides it acquired from the U.S. presidential envoy, Steve Witkoff, and from the mediators.”
Israel desires Hamas to launch half of the remaining hostages in return for a promise to barter an enduring truce. Hamas as a substitute desires to observe the ceasefire deal reached by the 2 sides, which requires negotiations to start on the ceasefire’s harder second section, during which the remaining hostages could be launched and Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza.
A return to battle would enable Netanyahu to keep away from the robust trade-offs known as for within the second section of the settlement and the thorny query of who would govern Gaza. It will additionally shore up his coalition, which relies on far-right lawmakers who need to depopulate Gaza and re-build Jewish settlements there.
Gaza already was in a humanitarian disaster
The battle erupted when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 individuals, largely civilians, and taking 251 hostages. Most have been launched in ceasefires or different offers, with israeli forces rescuing solely eight and recovering dozens of our bodies.
Israel responded with a navy offensive that killed over 48,000 Palestinians, in response to native well being officers, and displaced an estimated 90% of Gaza’s inhabitants. The territory’s Well being Ministry doesn’t differentiate between civilians and militants, however says over half of the lifeless have been ladies and kids.
The ceasefire had introduced some reduction to Gaza and allowed a whole lot of hundreds of displaced Palestinians to renew to what remained of their houses.
Netanyahu faces mounting criticism
The launched hostages, a few of whom had been emaciated, have repeatedly implored the federal government to press forward with the ceasefire to return all remaining captives. Tens of hundreds of Israelis have taken half in mass demonstrations calling for a ceasefire and return of all hostages.
Mass demonstrations are deliberate later Tuesday and Wednesday following Netanyahu’s announcement this week that he desires to fireplace the pinnacle of Israel’s Shin Guess inner safety company. Critics have lambasted the transfer as an try by Netanyahu to divert blame for his authorities’s failures within the Oct. 7 assault and dealing with of the conflict.
Because the ceasefire in Gaza started in mid-January, Israeli forces have killed dozens of Palestinians who the navy says approached its troops or entered unauthorized areas.
Nonetheless, the deal has tenuously held with out an outbreak of large violence. Egypt, Qatar and the US have been attempting to mediate the subsequent steps within the ceasefire.
Federman reported from Jerusalem and Magdy from Cairo. Related Press reporters Mohammad Jahjouh in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip; Abdel Kareem Hana in Gaza Metropolis, Gaza Strip; Fatma Khaled in Cairo; and Tia Goldenberg in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed.
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