Israeli army confirms it has carried out airstrikes in Rafah – Middle East crisis live | Israel

Following Israeli airstrikes on Gaza earlier today, more senior ministers have made remarks casting doubt on the government’s commitment to the ceasefire deal.

Amichai Chikli, Israel’s diaspora affairs minister and a vocal hardliner, said: “As long as Hamas exists, there will be war.”

Another cabinet member, Avi Dichter, described the situation as “difficult and complex”, accusing Hamas of violating the truce on the assumption that “Israel will not resume fighting.”

He added: “The moment all the living hostages are in our hands, the conditions have changed. Israel will not give up on disarming Hamas.”

From the opposition, Yair Golan, leader of the centre left Democrats party, also called for action, saying on social media: “Hamas’s attack in Gaza requires a decisive response. Only in this way are the rules of the game set.”

Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed Israel’s security chiefs to “take firm action against terror targets in the Gaza Strip” after attacks in Rafah today.

Netanyahu issued the order during a meeting with defence minister Israel Katz and the heads of the Shin Bet, the domestic security agency, and the Mossad (foreign intelligence), the office said.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that Palestinian militants fired RPGs and sniper rounds at troops operating in the Rafah area of southern Gaza. In response, the IDF said it carried out a series of airstrikes on “terror targets” in the enclave.

The IDF has issued a full statement on today’s attacks in Rafah:

Earlier today, terrorists fired an anti-tank missile and gunfire toward IDF troops operating to dismantle terrorist infrastructure in the Rafah area, in southern Gaza, in accordance with the ceasefire agreement.

In response, the IDF has begun striking in the area to eliminate the threat and dismantle tunnel shafts and military structures used for terrorist activity.

These terrorist actions constitute a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement, and the IDF will respond firmly.

The statement did not mention the reported attacks in Jabalia and other parts of southern Gaza.

The Palestinian health ministry in Gaza says it has received the bodies of 15 deceased Palestinian prisoners released on Saturday by Israel through the International Committee of the Red Cross, bringing the total number of bodies returned to 150.

In a statement, the ministry said its medical teams were following identification and examination procedures before handing the bodies over to families.

The ministry added “that some of the bodies show signs of abuse”, including beatings, handcuffing and blindfolding.

So far, the identities of 25 of the returned prisoners have been confirmed by relatives, according to the ministry.

Far-right extremist Israeli cabinet minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called on Benjamin Netanyahu to resume attacks in Gaza “with maximum force”.

Speaking on social media, Ben-Gvir said: “I call on the prime minister to order the IDF to fully resume combat in the Gaza Strip with maximum force.

“The false illusions that Hamas will change its ways, or even adhere to the agreement it signed, are proving, as expected, to be dangerous to our security.

“The Nazi terrorist organization must be completely destroyed – and the sooner, the better.”

Ben-Gvir has past convictions for supporting terrorism.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today that Israel’s war in Gaza is “reaching its conclusion,” announcing plans to give the conflict an official name: “The War of Revival.”

Netanyahu made the remarks before Israeli airstrikes hit Rafah on Sunday morning.

The Times of Israel reports that there was opposition to renaming the war from some hostages’ families and a few members of the cabinet.

Speaking at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said: “At the end of two consecutive years of fighting, we remember how we began. We rose from the terrible disaster of 7 October.”

He added that Israel would soon award military decorations to soldiers who fought in the campaign – a step traditionally marking the end of a war. Israeli media reported that Netanyahu left the meeting abruptly following news of the attacks across Gaza.

Israeli military airstrikes have also targeted areas in Jabalia, a city in northern Gaza, according to Israeli media, as attacks continue to escalate despite a week-old ceasefire.

Local news agency Wafa reported that at least two Palestinians were killed and several others injured in a strike east of Jabalia. Emergency crews have been unable to reach the site after Israel designated the area a “high-risk zone.”

The attacks come as prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu left a cabinet meeting to hold emergency security briefings, amid growing concern over the fragile truce.

The strike is the latest in a series of Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement brokered by the US last week.

Senior Hamas official Izzat Al Risheq has said that the Palestinian militant group remain committed to the ceasefire, which he accused Israel of repeatedly violating:

“Hamas movement reaffirms its commitment to the ceasefire agreement and emphasises that the Zionist occupation is the party continuing to violate the agreement and fabricate baseless pretexts to justify its crimes.”

“Netanyahu’s attempts to evade and disavow his commitments come under pressure from his extremist terrorist coalition, in a bid to escape his responsibilities before the mediators and guarantors.”

Israel have confirmed that the second of two bodies returned overnight by Hamas was that of a Thai farm worker, killed during the 7 October 2023 attack, whose body was taken to Gaza, AFP reports.

Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the military had informed the family of the deceased hostage, Sonthaya Oakkharasri, that their loved one had been returned to Israel and formally identified.

Israel have launched airstrikes in Rafah in southern Gaza, Israeli and Palestinian media report, as clashes flared between Israeli forces and Hamas despite a fragile US-brokered ceasefire.

Israel’s public broadcaster Kan said the air force was striking targets in Rafah, while other outlets reported attacks elsewhere in southern Gaza and in the city of Jabalia in the north of the territory.

Israeli TV network Channel 12 reported that the Rafah strikes were aimed at protecting members of the Yasser Abu Shabab militia – an Israeli-backed armed group accused by Palestinian sources of stealing humanitarian aid and attacking civilians during Israel’s two-year war on Gaza.

The Palestinian outlet Quds Network, citing an unnamed security source, said a Hamas-led internal security unit had carried out an operation targeting a hideout belonging to the Yasser Abu Shabab group east of Rafah, shortly before the Israeli airstrikes began.

According to The Times of Israel, “terror operatives in the Gaza Strip launched an attack on Israeli forces in Rafah,” prompting the strikes.

The Israeli military said that Hamas militants have carried out “multiple attacks” against Israeli forces beyond the “yellow line” buffer zone, including a rocket-propelled grenade and sniper fire, calling it a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire.

There was no immediate comment from Hamas.

Israel has launched an attack on Gaza, according to Israeli media, amid escalating tensions and mutual accusations with Hamas over breaches of the US-brokered ceasefire aimed at ending the war in the territory.

There was no immediate comment from the military on the reported attack.

The Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt will remain closed until further notice, Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has said, adding its reopening will depend on Hamas handing over the bodies of deceased hostages as the two sides continued to trade blame over ceasefire violations.

Hamas, in a statement late on Saturday, said Netanyahu’s decision to keep the crossing closed “constitutes a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement and a repudiation of the commitments he made to the mediators and guarantor parties.”

As of Saturday evening, Hamas had handed back 12 of 28 deceased captives, saying it would need specialist recovery equipment to retrieve the rest from the ruins of Gaza.

In key developments:

• Israel identified the body of a deceased hostage today, after Hamas handed over two bodies of what the militant group said are deceased hostages to the Red Cross late Saturday night.

• Late on Saturday, the US state department said it had received “credible reports indicating an imminent ceasefire violation by Hamas against the people of Gaza.”

• Hamas has rejected the accusations, calling them “false” and blaming Israel for sponsoring “criminal gangs” responsible for killings, kidnappings and looting in Gaza. The group said its police forces were pursuing those responsible and urged Washington “to stop echoing the occupation’s misleading narrative”.

• Gaza’s media office has accused Israel of violating the ceasefire with Hamas 47 times since the truce came into effect in early October.