Israeli forces launched new airstrikes against Hamas in the Gaza Strip early Tuesday as the cease-fire deal fell apart following the terror group’s reported refusal to free more hostages.
“Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office vowed in a statement following the strikes that were ordered after talks between the two sides to extend the peace agreement stalled.
A man checks the car hit by an Israeli drone in Burj al-Muluk, Lebanon on March 15. ZUMAPRESS.com
A man inspects the rubble of a house hit by a US strike on the weekend in Yemen’s northern Saada province on March 17. AFP via Getty Images
Netanyahu’s office said “Hamas repeatedly refused to release our hostages and rejected all offers it received from the U.S. presidential envoy, Steve Witkoff, and from the mediators.”
Israel and Hamas had agreed to a cease-fire in January, which led to dozens of Israeli hostages being freed in exchange for the release of nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
A Hamas official, Taher Nunu, slammed the massive attacks from Israel early Tuesday.
A damaged Syrian armored vehicle sits abandoned on the roadside in Tell al-Hara, Daraa, Syria, on Feb. 26. Xinhua/Shutterstock
Israel and Hamas had agreed to a cease-fire in January, which led to dozens of Israeli hostages being freed in exchange for the release of nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. AFP via Getty Images
“The international community faces a moral test: either it allows the return of the crimes committed by the occupation army or it enforces a commitment to ending the aggression and war against innocent people in Gaza,” he said.
The Hamas-backed Gaza ministry of health said at least 44 people were killed so far from the Israeli assault.
With Post wires