Israel resumes Gaza strikes despite commitment to US-backed ceasefire: ‘war still ongoing’
The Israeli bombardments in Gaza come as Hamas returned two more hostage bodies amid mounting civilian casualties and displacement
Israeli planes and tanks pounded areas in eastern Gaza on Thursday, Palestinian residents and witnesses said, a day after Israel said it remained committed to a US-backed ceasefire despite launching more lethal bombardments in the territory.
Witnesses said Israeli planes carried out 10 air strikes in areas east of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, while tanks shelled areas east of Gaza City in the north. No injuries or deaths were reported.
The Israeli military said it carried out “precise” strikes against “terrorist infrastructure that posed a threat to the troops” in the areas, which Israel still occupies.
The strikes were the latest test of the fragile ceasefire that came into effect on October 10, in the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
“We’re scared that another war will break out, because we don’t want a war. We’ve suffered two years of displacement. We don’t know where to go or where to come,” said a displaced man, Fathi Al-Najjar, in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza.
At the tent encampment where Najjar spoke, girls and boys were filling plastic bottles with water from metal containers placed on the side of the street, and women cooked food for their families using clay-made firewood ovens.