Israel reportedly signaled late Wednesday that it would continue to honor a tenuous cease-fire in Gaza, even as its military defended renewed strikes on Hamas targets that it said were necessary to protect Israeli forces and uphold the terms of the agreement.
The Israeli air force struck what it called “weapons and aerial assets” posing an “immediate threat,” following dozens of strikes launched since Tuesday night. The Israel Defense Forces said the operations were in response to “blatant violations” by Hamas, including the killing of an Israeli soldier.
Palestinian health authorities reported more than 100 people killed and over 200 injured since the retaliatory strikes began, without clarifying how many were Hamas fighters. The militant organization — officially designated a terrorist group by the United States — denied that it had attacked Israeli troops and accused Jerusalem of seeking to break the deal with Washington’s approval.
Israel rejected that claim, releasing drone footage that it said showed Hamas attempting to disguise the recovery of a hostage’s body. Under the cease-fire, Hamas is obligated to return the remains of 13 captives still held in Gaza. Instead, the military said, the group delivered further remains from a hostage whose body Israel had already recovered in 2024.
The exchange underscores the fragility of a cease-fire that, while reducing the scale of violence, has not ended the fighting that has persisted since Hamas-led militants infiltrated Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Israel said recent strikes targeted militants including members of Hamas’s elite Nukhba unit, some of whom took part in that attack.
President Donald Trump has defended Israel’s right to respond to threats, insisting Tuesday that retaliatory strikes would not compromise the diplomatic effort. “Hamas is a very small part of peace in the Middle East, and they have to behave,” the president said. “But they said they would be good, and if they’re good, they’re going to be happy, and if they’re not good, they’re going to be terminated. Their lives will be terminated.”
Analysts warn that growing violations could put Washington in a difficult position if Israel resumes full-scale operations. “If it’s just blatant and ongoing, it will be hard for the U.S. to put its foot down on Israel,” said Jonathan Rynhold, a political scientist at Bar-Ilan University. America’s credibility, he said, is now tied to ensuring Hamas cannot exploit the cease-fire.
Pressure is also mounting inside Israel. Members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party argue that holding fire now risks more Israeli lives. “To bring back dead hostages we are paying a price in our living soldiers,” said Moshe Sa’ada, a senior lawmaker. “The time has come to say we made a mistake, we failed, and end this cease-fire.” Only Hamas’s “full surrender,” he said, could bring lasting peace.
Within Gaza, the renewed strikes rattled residents who had begun to hope for the return of basic stability. “The bombing was close and scary,” said Rubaa Darwish, 19, from central Gaza. “The sounds of explosions were everywhere, and the sky kept flashing with light.”
Hamas, meanwhile, has used the cease-fire to reassert control, reportedly executing members of a rival militia. The group claims Israel is blocking equipment needed to recover bodies still trapped beneath rubble left by two years of war.
Israel has taken its own pressure tactics further. On Wednesday, Defense Minister Israel Katz signed an order barring Red Cross visits to thousands of Palestinian prisoners held on security charges, arguing such access “would harm Israeli security.”
Trump has made clear that the cease-fire must hold — and Netanyahu’s political position now depends on maintaining support from Washington while quelling unrest at home. As Rynhold put it, the prime minister faces limited options. “He’s trapped,” he said. “To defy the United States is not a tenable position to maintain.”
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