Israeli forces launched intense airstrikes across Gaza on Saturday, resulting in 27 deaths, including three children, as attacks targeted a police station, residential buildings, and displacement tents. Palestinian health officials confirmed the casualties, noting strikes in various locations throughout the territory.
Targets and Military Justification
The Israeli military reported striking commanders and facilities linked to Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups. Officials described the operations as a direct response to a violation of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire, established last October following two years of intense conflict in Gaza.
Hamas, which governs nearly half of the Gaza Strip, accused Israel of breaching the truce first. The group offered no confirmation on whether its members or sites were affected in the strikes.
Impact on Civilians and Infrastructure
The assault hit the Sheikh Radwan police station west of Gaza City, where medics and local police reported 10 officers and detainees killed. Rescue teams continue searching the rubble for additional victims, according to Hamas-administered police sources.
Additional strikes damaged at least two homes in Gaza City and a tent camp for displaced residents in southern Khan Younis, local authorities stated. Footage from the scene shows charred walls and scattered debris in a multi-story apartment building, with destruction spilling onto nearby streets.
Samer al-Atbash, uncle of the three children killed, expressed grief over the loss: “We found my three little nieces in the street. They say ‘ceasefire’ and all. What did those children do? What did we do?”
Ceasefire Background and Violations
These strikes precede the planned reopening of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, part of a U.S.-supported initiative to conclude the war that has ravaged the region. The conflict erupted after Hamas-led gunmen attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
Israeli officials warn that fighting may resume if Hamas refuses to disarm. The military detailed that Saturday’s actions also neutralized weapon storage and production sites, following an Friday incident where troops spotted eight gunmen exiting a tunnel in Rafah, a southern area under Israeli deployment per the truce.
Forces killed three gunmen and captured a fourth, identified as a local Hamas commander. Hamas provided no response to the event. Dozens of its fighters remain in Rafah tunnels since the ceasefire, with some lost in subsequent clashes.
The truce has faced repeated disruptions. Gaza health officials report over 500 deaths, mostly civilians, from Israeli fire, while four Israeli soldiers have died at the hands of Palestinian militants, according to Israeli authorities. Both parties blame each other for infractions, as the U.S. urges progress toward the deal’s later stages, aimed at a permanent resolution.
Upcoming phases address Hamas disarmament—a condition the group rejects—Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and the introduction of international peacekeepers. Hamas pushes to incorporate its 10,000 police into a proposed U.S.-backed Palestinian administration for Gaza, a proposal likely to encounter Israeli resistance.
