Gaza once again bore the brunt of Israeli warplanes as Palestinian civilians hurriedly sought shelter, and the unsettling wail of rocket sirens filled the air in southern Israel on Friday, marking the resumption of conflict after a collapsed week-long truce without any extension agreement.
The Israeli military, accusing Hamas of breaking the truce by firing rockets, declared the resumption of combat operations.
According to the military, its planes were engaged in bombing “terrorist targets” within the enclave.
Hamas attributed the truce’s collapse to Israel, claiming that Israel is to blame for rejecting all proposals to release additional hostages held by militants in the enclave.
As the deadline passed, Reuters journalists stationed in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, observed a relentless barrage intensifying over eastern areas, resulting in columns of smoke ascending into the sky.
Residents took to the streets, fleeing for shelter further west.
Above the ruins in the northern part of the enclave, the primary theatre of war before the truce, substantial plumes of smoke soared, visible from Israel across the border.
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The sounds of barking dogs were drowned out by the rattling gunfire and thudding explosions, forming a chaotic symphony.
Two hours post-truce, Gaza’s health ministry, under the influence of Hamas, reported that 32 individuals had already been killed in air strikes.
‘With the resumption of fighting, we emphasise: The Israeli government is committed to achieving the goals of the war—to free our hostages, to eliminate Hamas, and to ensure that Gaza will never pose a threat to the residents of Israel,’ the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
Hamas was equally defiant: ‘What Israel did not achieve during the fifty days before the truce, it will not achieve by continuing its aggression after the truce,’ Ezzat El Rashq, a member of the Hamas political bureau, said on the group’s website.
‘With the steadfastness of our people and the heroism of our resistance, we confront the enemy’s crimes, the resumption of its Nazi aggression, and its targeting of civilians.’
The seven-day pause, which began on Nov. 24 and was extended twice, had allowed for the exchange of hostages held in Gaza for Palestinian prisoners and facilitated the entry of humanitarian aid into the shattered coastal strip.
Eighty Israeli women and children hostages were freed in return for 240 Palestinian detainees in Israeli jails, all women and teens. An additional 25 foreign hostages, mainly Thai farmworkers, were also released under parallel deals.
Mediators had sought to extend the truce by finding a formula for hostage releases to continue, possibly including Israeli men now that fewer women and children remain in captivity.
Israel has pledged to eradicate Hamas following the Oct. 7 assault by the militant group, during which, according to Israel, gunmen claimed the lives of 1,200 people and seized 240 hostages.
Gaza has been under the leadership of Hamas, which has openly sworn to destroy Israel, since 2007.
Much of the territory lies in ruins following Israel’s bombardment and ground invasion. Palestinian health authorities, recognized by the United Nations as reliable, report over 15,000 confirmed deaths in Gaza, with thousands more missing and feared buried beneath the rubble.
The United Nations states that as many as 80 percent of Gaza’s 2.3 million inhabitants have been uprooted from their homes, with no escape from the cramped territory. A considerable portion of the displaced population is now forced to sleep outdoors in improvised shelters.
Israel has instituted a complete blockade, and residents, along with humanitarian agencies, contend that the assistance received during the truce is minimal compared to the substantial requirements of the displaced population.