Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a stern video statement on Tuesday evening, announcing that Israel has "fully resumed fighting against Hamas in the Gaza Strip." He warned that "negotiations can only continue under fire" and emphasized that "this is just the beginning." His remarks followed a large-scale airstrike by the Israeli military on Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip.
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03-20, 2025According to the Hamas-controlled health ministry, the airstrikes have killed over 400 people and injured hundreds more. This was the largest assault since the ceasefire agreement took effect on January 19. The fragile truce had largely held, but the new round of attacks suggests that plans to permanently end the war may have been shelved.
Airstrikes on Beit Lahia, Rafah, Nuseirat, and Mawasi on Tuesday shattered the relative calm that Gazan residents had enjoyed since January, with hospitals once again overflowing with casualties. Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman Tameem Khallaf stated that the airstrikes were a "blatant violation" of the ceasefire agreement and represented a "dangerous escalation." Egypt is a mediator in the relevant negotiations and condemned the attacks on Gaza.
Gaza hospital director Mohammed Zaqout told BBC Arabic that "the attacks were so sudden that the existing medical staff was insufficient to cope with such a large-scale assault, and additional teams were immediately called in to help." In his address, Netanyahu stated that Israel had tried to negotiate with Hamas for the release of the remaining Israeli hostages held in Gaza, but he accused Hamas of rejecting these offers every time.
Israel and Hamas have disagreed on how to proceed with the ceasefire agreement since the end of the first phase in early March, following multiple exchanges of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners. The agreement involves three phases, and negotiations for the second phase, which were supposed to begin six weeks ago, have not occurred. The United States and Israel want to change the terms of the agreement, extending the first phase to release more hostages, thereby delaying the start of the second phase, which was originally scheduled to establish a permanent ceasefire and require the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, making the agreement uncertain. However, Hamas rejected this proposal to modify the agreement made by the US, Qatari, and Egyptian mediators, calling it unacceptable.
Netanyahu stated on Tuesday evening that Israel would continue to fight to achieve all of its war goals – "to bring back the hostages, eliminate Hamas, and ensure that Hamas does not pose a threat to Israel." US National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said, "Hamas could have released the hostages to extend the ceasefire, but instead chose rejection and war." According to officials, Israel consulted with the administration of US President Trump before launching the attacks.
Hamas warned that Israel's resumption of violence would "sentence" the remaining hostages held in Gaza to "death" and accused Israel of trying to force its surrender. In an interview with the BBC, Dr. Sabrina Dass, an obstetrician and gynecologist training Palestinian doctors in southern Gaza, said, "Everything was very sudden... everyone's morale is destroyed because we know the war has started again." Dr. Dass said her colleagues at Nasser Hospital were "operating all night" as "mass casualties started pouring in again."
A group representing the families of the hostages accused the Israeli government of "abandoning the hostages" by launching the new attacks and has been protesting outside the Israeli parliament. Israeli hostage families are horrified by the news of the airstrikes. "The Israeli government is not perfect, Israel has not done enough, because my brothers have not come home," Leeland Berman told the BBC, whose twin brothers are still being held in Gaza. "But if Hamas wanted to, the hostages would come back. They are in the hands of Hamas."
Israel says Hamas is still holding 59 hostages, 24 of whom are believed to be alive. The war was triggered by Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed about 1,200 people and took 251 people back to Gaza as captives. Israel subsequently launched a large-scale military offensive, which, according to the Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza, has killed more than 48,500 Palestinians and caused massive damage to homes and infrastructure.
