TL;DR – Israel has violated the ceasefire and peace plan set by Trump
- Israel’s military reported the death of a soldier in southern Gaza amid renewed air strikes ordered by Prime Minister Netanyahu, citing an unconfirmed Hamas attack.
- Hamas denied attacking Israeli forces and claimed it remains committed to the US-backed ceasefire, while accusing Israel of violations by retrieving remains of an already recovered hostage.
- The ceasefire’s fragility was highlighted by ongoing skirmishes, with officials warning that Israeli actions could hinder search and recovery operations for hostages.
- Israel is using Trump’s trip to Asia as cover to go back on the agreement and target civilians in Gaza.
Israel says one of its soldiers killed in Gaza – as Netanyahu orders ‘powerful’ strikes
Israel’s military has said one of its troops has been killed in fighting in southern Gaza after Benjamin Netanyahu ordered new air strikes in the strip.
The death was announced after witnesses – including an Associated Press reporter and health officials – reported explosions and tank fire in Gaza City and Deir al Balah.
Those came after Mr Netanyahu ordered “powerful” strikes on Tuesday evening, after Israel accused Hamas of attacking its forces in southern Gaza, straining the peace deal brokered by Donald Trump earlier this month.
Hamas denied involvement in the attack in the city of Rafah and said in a statement that it remained committed to the US-backed ceasefire.
Mr Netanyahu had also accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire 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 instructed the military echelon to carry out powerful strikes in the Gaza Strip immediately.”
US Vice President JD Vance said the ceasefire, which began on 10 October, was holding, telling reporters: “That doesn’t mean there aren’t going to be little skirmishes here and there.
“We know that Hamas or somebody else within Gaza attacked an (Israeli military) soldier. We expect the Israelis are going to respond, but I think the president’s peace is going to hold despite that.”
Hamas on Tuesday said that it would postpone the planned handover of a body of a hostage it had recovered, claiming violations of the ceasefire by Israel.
In a sign of the fragility of the ceasefire, Israeli troops were shot at in Rafah, and returned fire, according to an Israeli military official.