An Israeli strike in southern Gaza killed senior Hamas leader Salah Bardawil, according to the Associated Press.
Bardawil was a Palestinian parliament and political bureau member and was among at least 26 people killed in the Israeli strikes between Saturday night and Sunday morning.
Bardawil’s wife was also killed by the strike.
The Israeli military instructed people to evacuate from part of the city of Rafah, saying it would soon operate in the Tel Sultan area of the city.
“Remaining in camps, tents, or houses in Tel al-Sultan or walking on any other route endangers your lives and the lives of your family members,” military spokesman Col. Avichay Adraee said in a statement.
The strikes on Saturday evening came after Israel’s cease-fire with Hamas ended last week with a separate series of Israeli airstrikes that killed hundreds of Palestinians.
The cease-fire began in January after 15 months of war between the Jewish State and the terrorist group. Hamas released 25 Israeli hostages and the bodies of eight others during the cease-fire in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
Negotiations for the next phase of the cease-fire broke down after Hamas refused Israeli and U.S.-backed proposals to free more hostages ahead of any long-term truce talks. Fifty-nine hostages remain in Hamas’s custody, including 35 who are believed to be dead.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the attack last week were the result of “Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all of the proposals it has received from US Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff and from the mediators.”
“Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength,” the prime minister’s office said.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Israel consulted with the Trump administration before carrying out the strikes last week.
“All those who seek to terrorize not just Israel but also the United States of America, will see a price to pay. All hell will break loose,” Leavitt said, quoting President Trump’s threats toward Hamas.