At least 22 Palestinians have been killed in a series of Israeli air strikes across northern and central Gaza, Hamas medical and civil defence officials have said.
They said five sites had been hit, including residential homes. A senior Hamas commander was among the dead, according to local sources.
The Israeli military said it had struck targets in Gaza in response to an incident earlier on Saturday, when it said an “armed terrorist” had fired at soldiers after crossing the Strip’s so-called “yellow line” designating areas under full Israeli control. Hamas denied this.
Both sides have accused each other of violating the ceasefire deal agreed on six weeks ago.
More than 310 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes since the ceasefire came into force, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
The territory’s civil defence said Saturday’s strikes by Israel targeted Gaza City in the north, as well as Deir al-Balah and Nuseirat camp in central Gaza.
The Hamas officials said five people had been killed at the Abbas junction in the densely populated Rimal area of Gaza City. Witnesses said an Israeli strike set a car on fire.
In addition, three people were killed near a mosque in Deir al-Balah, the officials said.
Two houses were targeted in Israeli strikes in Nuseirat, they added, with three killed after the home of the Abu Amouneh family was hit. Seven others were killed in another strike targeting the house of the Abu Shawish family.
Three more people were killed later on Saturday when a house in western Gaza City was hit, officials reported.
The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a later statement: “Today, Hamas violated the ceasefire again, sending a terrorist into Israel held territory to attack IDF soldiers. In response, Israel eliminated five senior Hamas terrorists.”
The statement also called on mediators to “insist that Hamas fulfil its side of the ceasefire”.
Following the strikes, Hamas said the army’s westward push of the yellow line and continued bombardment of eastern Gaza amounted to a “blatant breach” of the agreement.
The group called on mediators and the US to intervene urgently, warning that Israel was attempting to impose “new facts on the ground” and undermine the ceasefire.
The Israeli military launched an offensive in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 69,500 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since then, including 280 during the ceasefire, according to the territory’s health ministry.
