Key events
Gaza health ministry says Israeli strikes kill at least 200 people across Gaza
The death toll from this new wave of strikes continues to rise.
Israeli strikes on Tuesday have now killed at least 200 people across the Gaza Strip, the spokesperson of Gaza’s health ministry, Khalil Al-Deqran, told Reuters.
Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered the strikes because of a lack of progress in talks to extend the ceasefire.
Officials said the operation was open-ended and was expected to expand.
“Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength,” Netanyahu’s office said.
The surprise attack shattered a period of relative calm during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and raised the prospect of a full return to fighting in a 17-month war that has killed over 48,000 Palestinians and caused widespread destruction across Gaza.
It also raised questions about the fate of the roughly two dozen Israeli hostages held by Hamas who are believed to still be alive.
Gaza rescuers say death toll from Israeli strikes rises to 121
Gaza’s civil defence agency said the death toll from the massive operation Israel launched on Tuesday has risen to 121 people, mostly women, children and the elderly, according to AFP.
“Over 121 martyrs, most of them children, women, and the elderly, are the initial toll of the aggression,” said agency spokesman Mahmud Basal.
Israeli official says Gaza offensive to last ‘as long as necessary’
An Israeli official has tole Agence France Presse that the extensive operation launched across the Gaza Strip on Tuesday was targeting Hamas leadership and infrastructure and would last “as long as necessary”.
The Israeli military “has launched a series of preemptive strikes targeting mid-ranking military commanders, leadership officials and terrorist infrastructure belonging to the Hamas terrorist organisation,” the official, who declined to be named, said, adding that the operation “will continue as long as necessary, and will expand beyond air strikes”.
Death toll rises to 100, says Palestinian health ministry
The Israeli military said it hit targets across Gaza early on Tuesday, ending a weeks-long standoff over extending the ceasefire that halted fighting in January, with Palestinian health ministry officials reporting at least 100 dead, according to a report from Reuters news.
Strikes were reported in multiple locations, including northern Gaza, Gaza City and the Deir al-Balah, Khan Younis and Rafah in central and southern Gaza Strip. Palestinian health ministry officials said many of the dead were children.
White House confirms it was briefed in advance of Gaza attack
The White House has confirmed it was briefed in advance about Israel’s attack on Gaza, with spokesperson Karoline Leavitt quoted by US media as saying that those who seek to terrorise Israel and the US “will see a price to pay”. According to NBC Leavitt said:
The Trump administration and the White House were consulted by the Israelis on their attacks in Gaza tonight. And as President Trump has made it clear, Hamas, the Houthis, Iran – all those who seek to terrorize not just Israel but also the United States of America – will see a price to pay.
All hell will break loose, and all of the terrorists in the Middle East – again, the Houthis, Hezbollah, Hamas, Iranian-backed terror proxies and Iran themselves – should take President Trump very seriously when he says he is not afraid to stand for law-abiding people. He is not afraid to stand up for the United States of America and our friend and our ally Israel.
Death toll rises to 80, children among those killed in Israeli strikes ‘targeting Hamas’
The death toll has risen to at least 80 Palestinians, including many children, medics have told Reuters.
Incredibly distressing images are already appearing from Gaza showing the bodies of children in hospital morgues, killed in what Israel claims are strikes targeting Hamas.
Anas al-Sharif, a reporter for Al Jazeera, wrote on X that “Nine dismembered bodies, mostly women and children, have arrived at Al-Kuwait Specialized Hospital following Israeli bombardment on Al-Mawasi, Khan Yunis.”
Later he added, “Martyrs, mostly children, arrive at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital after Israeli strikes targeted civilian homes in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza.”
His posts showed the bodies of at least eight dead children.
Many of the casualties appeared to be arriving on donkey carts due to the lack of fuel caused by Israel’s blockade on aid.
It is not possible for the Guardian to verify the reports as Israel does not allow foreign journalists into the devastated territory.
Israel has unilaterally ended ceasefire, Hamas officials says
A senior Hamas official has told Reuters that Israel is unilaterally ending the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
They said the move would expose Israeli hostages to an unknown fate.
Israel believes there are about two dozen living hostages in Gaza, including one Thai and one Nepali. It also believes there are about 35 dead hostages who remain in the territory.
Netanyahu threatens Hamas with ‘increasing military strength’ as children reported among dead
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he and defence minister Israel Katz have told the military to take “strong action” against Hamas in Gaza, even as reports from the territory said that children were among the dead.
In a post on X, Netanyahu’s office said:
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz have instructed the IDF to take strong action against the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip.
This follows Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all of the proposals it has received from US Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff and from the mediators.
The IDF is, at this time, attacking targets of the Hamas terrorist organization throughout the Gaza Strip in order to achieve the objectives of the war as they have been determined by the political echelon including the release of all of our hostages, the living and the deceased.
Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength. The operational plan was presented by the IDF over the weekend and approved by the political leadership.
Israel has refused to stick to the terms of the ceasefire deal that it agreed with Hamas and has repeatedly violated it since it began at the end of January, killing more than 100 Palestinians and also blocking all aid for the past two weeks.
Opening summary
The White House has confirmed it was briefed in advance after Israel resumed what it said were “extensive strikes” on Gaza, reportedly killing dozens of Palestinian people.
The strikes are Israel’s heaviest assault on the territory since a ceasefire took effect in January.
The move came after Hamas refused to agree to its demands to extend phase one of the ceasefire agreement.
In Gaza, explosions could be heard at various locations and ambulances were arriving at Al Aqsa Hospital in central Gaza.
The Palestinian civil emergency service said Israel carried out at least 35 airstrikes across the Gaza Strip, killing at least 30 people. In Gaza City, medics reported that at least eight Palestinians, including children, had been killed.
Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement cited by Israeli media that the attacks had “the goal of achieving the war objectives as determined by the political leadership, including the release of all our hostages – both the living and the fallen”.
“This follows Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages and its rejection of all the proposals it received from US president’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, and from the mediators,” the statement said.
Three houses were hit in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza, a building in Gaza City, and targets in Khan Younis and Rafah, according to medics and witnesses.
The first phase of the ceasefire agreement ended two weeks ago but Israel has refused to implement the scheduled second phase, which is supposed to end with its withdrawal from Gaza, the freedom of all remaining hostages held by Hamas, and a definitive end to the conflict.
It has also blocked all aid to Gaza over the past two weeks, in violation of the ceasefire deal, in a bid to force Hamas to accept its demands. The move has been condemned by countries including the UK, France and Germany.
