Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday said he had instructed the military to launch “powerful strikes” in Gaza, accusing Hamas of breaching the ongoing ceasefire agreement in the enclave.
A statement from Netanyahu’s office did not provide specific details regarding the alleged violation.
However, an Israeli military official claimed Hamas had attacked Israeli forces in a zone under Israel’s control, calling it “another clear breach of the ceasefire.”
Earlier, Netanyahu had also accused Hamas of failing to return the correct remains during the process of transferring the bodies of Israeli hostages.
Hamas had initially announced that it would hand over the body of a missing hostage discovered in a tunnel in Gaza, but later postponed the handover, saying Israel had already violated the ceasefire terms.
Reports from Israeli media suggested clashes took place between Israeli troops and Hamas fighters in Rafah, though the Israeli military has not commented on those accounts.
Hamas, for its part, said it was adhering to the ceasefire agreement and accused Netanyahu of “seeking pretexts” to avoid fulfilling Israel’s commitments.
A U.S.-backed ceasefire is in force between Israel and Hamas, but each side has accused the other of violations.
Under the ceasefire terms, Hamas released all living hostages in return for nearly 2,000 Palestinian convicts and war-time detainees, while Israel pulled back its troops and halted its offensive.
Hamas has also agreed to hand over the remains of all dead hostages yet to be recovered, but has said that it will take time to locate and retrieve the bodies in the enclave, which has been devastated by two years of war. Israel says Hamas can access the remains of most of the hostages.
