GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories – Israel launched massive airstrikes across Gaza following the death of a soldier, marking the deadliest night of bombing since a U.S.-brokered truce took effect three weeks ago, officials said Tuesday.
Gaza’s civil defense agency reported more than 100 Palestinians killed, including at least 35 children, in what Israeli forces described as strikes targeting “dozens of Hamas targets.” The death toll was confirmed by medical sources at five Gaza hospitals.
The Israeli military said it targeted 30 senior militants after Master Sergeant Yona Efraim Feldbaum, 37, was killed when his engineering vehicle was struck by enemy fire in Rafah. Defense Minister Israel Katz claimed “dozens of Hamas commanders were neutralised.”
“There will be no immunity for anyone in the leadership of the terrorist organization Hamas,” Katz declared. “Whoever raises a hand against an IDF soldier, his hand will be severed.”
Gaza residents express despair
The strikes shattered a fragile sense of normalcy that had begun to return to the war-torn territory. At Al-Shifa hospital, medical staff reported one strike hit the facility’s backyard.
“We had just started to breathe again, trying to rebuild our lives, when the bombardment came back,” said Khadija al-Husni, 31, sheltering at a school in the Al-Shati refugee camp. “It’s a crime. Either there is a truce or a war — it can’t be both.”
In Deir al-Balah, Jalal Abbas, 40, accused Israel of seeking false pretexts to resume military operations.
“The problem is that Trump gives them cover to kill civilians because they mislead him with false information,” Abbas told AFP. “We want an end to the war and the escalation. We’re exhausted and on the verge of collapse.”
Hamas denies responsibility
Hamas distanced itself from the Rafah incident, stating its fighters had “no connection to the shooting incident” and reaffirming commitment to the ceasefire. The group said the escalation would “hinder the search, excavation and recovery” of hostage remains.
President Donald Trump, who helped broker the October 10 ceasefire, had earlier endorsed Israel’s right to “hit back” if attacked while warning nothing would be allowed to jeopardise the truce.
Hostage return dispute
The violence comes amid growing tensions over the return of hostage remains. Hamas has returned 20 living captives and begun returning 28 bodies from among 251 people taken during its October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
On Monday, Hamas came under fire for allegedly staging a fake recovery, returning partial remains of a hostage whose body had already been repatriated two years ago.
Israeli government spokeswoman Shosh Bedrosian accused Hamas of deception: “Hamas dug a hole in the ground yesterday, placed the partial remains inside of it, covered it back up with dirt, and handed it over to the Red Cross.”
The International Committee of the Red Cross called the incident “unacceptable,” confirming its team was unaware of the staged discovery.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem rejected claims the group knows where remaining bodies are located, arguing Israel’s bombardment has left locations unrecognisable.
Casualties mount
The October 2023 Hamas attack killed 1,221 people on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to official figures. Israel’s subsequent assault on Gaza has killed at least 68,643 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, figures the UN considers reliable.
After issuing its strike announcement, the Israeli military said it had begun “renewed enforcement of the ceasefire,” though explosions continued to be visible over Gaza’s skyline.
The escalation threatens to derail the fragile truce agreement backed by the Trump administration and regional mediators Egypt, Turkey and Qatar.
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