JERUSALEM (Reuters) – The Israeli army launched an attack on Gaza on Sunday, Israeli media reported, dimming hopes that a weeklong U.S.-brokered ceasefire would lead to lasting peace in the enclave as Israel traded blame with Palestinian militant group Hamas.
An Israeli military official said on Sunday that Hamas had carried out multiple attacks on Israeli forces in Gaza, including a rocket-propelled grenade attack and a sniper attack on Israeli soldiers.
“Both incidents took place in an Israeli-controlled area…This is a daring ceasefire violation,” the official said.
Senior Hamas official Izzat Al Risheq said on Sunday that the Palestinian militant group remained committed to the ceasefire, which he accused Israel of repeatedly violating.
Neither Al Risheq nor the Israeli military official made any mention of the reported Israeli attacks in Gaza.
The government media office in Gaza said on Saturday that Israel had committed 47 violations following the ceasefire, leaving 38 dead and 143 injured.
The impact of Sunday's Israeli attacks, the most serious test since an already fragile ceasefire took effect on October 11, was not immediately clear.
The Israeli government and Hamas have been accusing each other of ceasefire violations for days, with Israel saying the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt will remain closed until further notice.
Rafah has been largely closed since May 2024. The ceasefire also includes increasing aid to the enclave, where famine was expected to hit hundreds of thousands of people in August, according to the IPC global hunger monitor.
Israel and Hamas are embroiled in a dispute over the return of the bodies of deceased hostages. Israel demanded that Hamas fulfill its obligations by handing over the remaining bodies of all 28 hostages.
Hamas has returned all 20 living hostages and 12 dead, but said the process will require efforts and special equipment to recover bodies buried under the rubble.
Huge obstacles still exist to Trump's plan to end the war. Key questions about the disarmament of Hamas, the governance of Gaza, the formation of an international 'stabilization force' and steps towards the creation of a Palestinian state remain to be resolved.
The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Maayan Lubell, Jaidaa Taha, Muhammad Al Gebaly, Alexander Cornwell and Steven Scheer; Writing by Andrew Mills; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
