Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has directed the military to launch powerful strikes on the Gaza Strip, following accusations that Hamas has breached the US-brokered ceasefire agreement.
A statement from the prime minister’s office said the order was issued on Tuesday after security consultations.
Hamas had been expected to transfer an additional body on Tuesday as part of the ceasefire deal, under which the group agreed to return the remains of 28 hostages. Instead, its armed wing announced a postponement, saying Israeli “escalation” was obstructing search and recovery efforts.
Late on Monday, Hamas handed over what it said was the next set of remains. However, Israeli officials said forensic analysis revealed the fragments belonged to Ofir Tzarfati — a hostage whose body had already been recovered nearly two years earlier. Netanyahu’s office condemned the development as a “clear violation” of the agreement.
Israel’s government spokesperson, Shosh Bedrosian, accused Hamas of staging the handover, claiming the remains were recently buried and exhumed before being transferred via the Red Cross. She warned that “nothing is off the table” in Israel’s response, which she said would be coordinated with the United States and President Donald Trump’s administration.
Hamas representative Hazem Qassem rejected those claims, arguing that Israeli airstrikes over the course of the two-year conflict have made it difficult to locate all remains. He maintained the group’s willingness to continue handovers “once they are found.”
Although Hamas has released all 20 living hostages covered by the truce, both sides accuse each other of ongoing violations. Gaza health authorities say at least 94 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire began.
On the ground, residents fear the lull in fighting may be coming to an end.
“Now they accuse Hamas of stalling — that is a pretext for renewed escalation,” said Abdul-Hayy al-Hajj Ahmed, 60. “We want the war to end, but I believe it will return.”
Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, called for harsher action, writing on X that Hamas must be neutralized “once and for all.”
The war began after the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack in which 1,221 people were killed in Israel, according to official figures. Israel’s subsequent offensive in Gaza has killed more than 68,000 people, according to the territory’s health ministry — numbers the United Nations regards as credible. Despite the ceasefire, the toll continues to rise as more bodies are found beneath rubble.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said Tzarfati was abducted from the Nova music festival on October 7 and murdered in captivity. His family expressed anguish over having to rebury their son yet again.
“This is the third time we have been forced to open Ofir’s grave,” they said.