Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered his military to immediately carry out strikes in Gaza[1].
It comes after he accused Hamas[2] of violating the ceasefire in the territory by handing over remains that were of an Israeli hostage who was already recovered.
A statement from the prime minister’s office said: “Following the security consultations, Prime Minister Netanyahu[3] instructed the military echelon to carry out powerful strikes in the Gaza Strip immediately.”
Hamas says it is having difficulty finding bodies of hostages as Israel claims it is a ploy
Hamas has said it is struggling to locate the bodies amid the vast destruction in Gaza, while Israel has accused the militant group of purposely delaying their return.
Over the weekend, Egypt deployed a team of experts and heavy equipment to help search for the bodies of the remaining hostages. That work continued Tuesday in Khan Younis and Nuseirat.
This is the second time since the ceasefire began on October 10 that remains turned over by Hamas have been problematic. Israel said one of the bodies Hamas released in the first week of the ceasefire belonged to an unidentified Palestinian.
During a previous ceasefire in February 2025, Hamas said it handed over the bodies of three hostages, Shiri Bibas and her two sons, but testing showed that one of the bodies returned was identified as a Palestinian woman. Shiri Bibas’ body was returned a day later.
Netanyahu’s statement calling for ‘powerful strikes
The statement from the Benjamin Netanyahu’s office read: “Following the security consultations, Prime Minister Netanyahu[4] instructed the military echelon to carry out powerful strikes in the Gaza Strip immediately.”
Netanyahu says body parts sent by Hamas were remains of a hostage already recovered
Benjamin Netanyahu said that body parts returned by Hamas overnight were the partial remains of a hostage previously recovered in Gaza by Israeli troops almost two years ago.
The Israeli leader called the return a “clear violation” of the ceasefire agreement, which requires Hamas to return all Israeli hostage remains as soon as possible.
Netanyahu wants ‘powerful strikes’ on Gaza immediately
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered “powerful strikes” on Gaza in a new test for the US-brokered ceasefire.
Netanyahu made the announcement shortly after Israel said Hamas had opened fire at Israeli forces in southern Gaza.
Tensions were already high after Hamas returned a set of remains that Israel said belonged to a body of an Israeli hostage recovered earlier in the war.
References
- ^ Gaza (www.mirror.co.uk)
- ^ Hamas (www.mirror.co.uk)
- ^ Prime Minister Netanyahu (www.mirror.co.uk)
- ^ Prime Minister Netanyahu (www.mirror.co.uk)