Israel and Hamas's weeklong truce came to an end on Friday, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office accusing the terrorists of violating the agreement by firing toward Israeli territory and not releasing all women and children hostages.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Friday it had “resumed combat operations."
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The weeklong truce resulted in the release of more than 100 hostages who were taken by Hamas and other terror groups during the Oct. 7 terrorist attack that ignited the current conflict, while outside countries were able to surge desperately needed humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
The IDF released a new map on Friday showing Gaza divided up into hundreds of numbered districts showing “evacuation zones” to be used in the “next stage of the war," which the IDF said was published in an attempt to ensure civilians are not harmed during upcoming military operations.
"The Air Force in cooperation with the fighting divisions attacked over 200 terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip: In recent hours, Air Force aircraft attacked a series of terrorist targets throughout the Gaza Strip, in the north of the Gaza Strip and in the south, in Khan Yunis and Rafih," IDF spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said on X.
They also dropped leaflets in areas of southern Gaza which included a QR code that connects to the map when scanned, even though telecommunications and electrical infrastructure had been damaged during the course of the war.
"Our forces are charging forward," Netanyahu said. "We continue to fight with all our strength until we achieve all our goals: the return of all our abductees, the elimination of Hamas, and the promise that Gaza will never be a threat to Israel again."
Israeli officials have indicated the next phase of their military campaign will take place in the southern part of Gaza, which has not been well received by United States officials, who are concerned about the possibility of significant civilian casualties, though it's unclear if Israel will heed the U.S.'s point.
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"The Secretary stressed the imperative of accounting for humanitarian and civilian protection needs in southern Gaza before any military operations there," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a readout of a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Netanyahu on Thursday.
Israeli government spokesman Eylon Levy said 137 hostages are still being held in Gaza, while 110 were released during the truce. There are 20 women and two children still among those still being held hostage in Gaza. It's unclear whether a new temporary ceasefire involving the release of the remaining hostages is still a viable possibility.