Israeli forces launched a series of major airstrikes across Gaza early on Tuesday, killing dozens of people, according to the enclave’s health authorities, signaling an end of a nearly two-month-long ceasefire after talks to extend the pause in fighting and secure the release of hostages held by Hamas stalled.
People look through the rubble in a school-turned-camp after an Israeli strike in Gaza City.
Early on Tuesday morning local time, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) announced it was conducting “extensive strikes on terror targets belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip,” after receiving orders from the country’s political leadership.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he and the country’s defense minister ordered the IDF to act due to “Hamas's repeated refusal to release our hostages” and its rejection of all proposals it received from President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Netanyahu’s office said going forward Israel will target Hamas with “increasing military strength,” and the country’s leadership has approved the IDF’s operational plan.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said the strikes had killed at least 200 people and many of the dead were children.
The strikes targeted multiple locations across the enclave, including parts of northern Gaza, Gaza City, Khan Younis and Rafah.
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White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Monday night that Israeli officials had consulted with the White House before launching the strikes on Gaza. Leavitt said Trump had made it clear that “Hamas, the Houthis, all those who seek to terrorize not just Israel but also the United States of America, will see a price to pay.” National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes told the Associated Press, “Hamas could have released hostages to extend the ceasefire but instead chose refusal and war.”
This is a developing story.