At least 50 Palestinians were killed on Tuesday night in a series of Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-run Civil Defence agency and hospital sources. The strikes came after Israel accused Hamas of violating the US-brokered ceasefire agreement through an attack that killed an Israeli soldier in southern Gaza.
Israel’s Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant, alleged that Hamas had “crossed a bright red line” by attacking Israeli troops and breaching the agreement on the return of deceased hostages’ bodies. “Hamas will pay many times over for attacking the soldiers and for violating the agreement to return the fallen hostages,” he said.
Hamas, however, denied any involvement in the Rafah incident and insisted that it remained committed to the truce. “Hamas affirms that it has no connection to the shooting incident in Rafah and affirms its commitment to the ceasefire agreement,” the group said in a statement, calling the Israeli bombardment a “blatant violation” of the accord.
A statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he had ordered “forceful strikes” in Gaza but did not provide further details.
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According to the Civil Defence agency, the Israeli strikes hit homes, schools, and residential blocks in Gaza City and Beit Lahia in the north, Bureij and Nuseirat in the central region, and Khan Younis in the south. At least 22 children were among the 50 people confirmed dead, while around 200 others were injured.
Witnesses in Gaza City described scenes of devastation, with “pillars of fire and smoke” rising as explosions rocked several neighbourhoods. In the Sabra district, four members of the al-Banna family — three women and a man — were pulled from the rubble of their home. In Bureij refugee camp, five members of the Abu Sharar family were killed in a strike on their house, while in Khan Younis, five more people died when an airstrike hit a vehicle travelling northwest of the city.
A Civil Defence spokesman said rescue teams were “working amid extremely difficult conditions” and warned that the death toll was expected to rise as more victims were believed to be trapped under debris.
The Israeli military confirmed that Master Sergeant Yona Efraim Feldbaum, a reservist, was killed during the Rafah attack. A military source said his unit was dismantling an underground tunnel when it came under fire from “terrorists in the area,” followed by several anti-tank missile launches.
The escalation has raised fears of a potential collapse of the fragile ceasefire deal, though the United States downplayed the risk of renewed large-scale hostilities.
Speaking aboard Air Force One, US President Donald Trump said, “As I understand it, they killed an Israeli soldier, so the Israelis hit back — and they should hit back.” He added, “Nothing is going to jeopardise the ceasefire… Hamas has to behave.”
US Vice President JD Vance also told reporters that the ceasefire remained “largely holding,” describing the violence as “little skirmishes” between both sides.
The latest bloodshed underscores the fragility of the truce and the deep mistrust between Israel and Hamas, as civilians in Gaza continue to bear the brunt of the violence.
