GAZA CITY, Palestine: Israeli forces on Monday struck several locations in southern Gaza in another violation of the ongoing ceasefire, Anadolu news agency reported, citing witnesses.
According to witnesses, Israeli artillery targeted eastern Rafah, while helicopters carried out attacks in Khan Younis. No casualties were immediately reported in the latest Israeli attacks.
The Gaza Media Office said Israel has carried out more than 590 violations of the truce so far since October 10. It said these incidents have resulted in 357 Palestinian deaths since the ceasefire came into effect.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army said on Sunday that it had killed more than 40 Hamas fighters over the past week during operations targeting tunnels near Rafah.
Earlier on Sunday, the army said it killed four people emerging from tunnels in Rafah overnight. It claimed that dozens of Hamas fighters remain inside tunnel networks under areas controlled by Israeli forces.
The military said its operations in the past 40 days were focused on eastern Rafah. It said troops were working to destroy tunnel shafts and infrastructure “above and below ground”. Hamas did not comment on the Israeli claim.
According to Israeli media, around 200 Hamas fighters are trapped in tunnels in Rafah. Negotiations on their fate are underway, according to sources cited by AFP.
Hamas says Israel testing ceasefire
Meanwhile, Hamas political bureau member Hossam Badran told Al Jazeera that the Palestinian group was fully complying with the ceasefire. He said Hamas was searching for the bodies of two Israeli captives believed to be buried under rubble.
Badran accused Israel of using the missing bodies as a pretext to delay progress to the second phase of the ceasefire.
He said Hamas had entered the deal to stop “the daily genocide war” committed by Israel in Gaza. He claimed there were ongoing Israeli violations but said they were “incomparable” to wartime levels.
Hamas operatives were also searching for the body of an Israeli captive in Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, according to local journalist Hani Mahmoud. The International Committee of the Red Cross was present but only in an advisory role.
Ceasefire framework
A ceasefire deal brokered by the United States and supported by Egypt, Qatar and Turkiye, took effect on 10 October.
Phase one focuses on the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. It also outlines plans to rebuild Gaza and establish a new governing structure without Hamas.
Despite the agreement, Israeli attacks continue. Gaza’s Health Ministry said on Monday that three Palestinians were killed and two were injured in the past 24 hours. It said some victims remained under rubble in areas rescue crews cannot reach.
Since the ceasefire began, the ministry has recorded 356 deaths and 908 injuries. It said 607 bodies were also recovered of those killed earlier.
Gaza’s health ministry stated that at least 70,103 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed and 170,985 others wounded in the Israeli military offensive since October 2023.
Meanwhile, the Jerusalem Water Authority said Israeli illegal settlers attacked a water well east of Ramallah, cutting off supplies to several Palestinian towns.
In the West Bank, Israeli forces arrested a 16-year-old at a military checkpoint, the Wafa news agency reported.
Pakistan and Egypt reaffirm support for Palestinian state
Pakistan and Egypt reaffirmed their support for a sovereign Palestinian state during a two-day visit by Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty to Islamabad.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar praised Egypt’s diplomatic and humanitarian role in Gaza.
Both sides reiterated support for an independent Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Meanwhile, Pope Leo XIV said the two-state solution remained “the only one likely to resolve the conflict”. He said the Holy See had long supported this position, noting that “Israel still does not accept it”.
