Israel said on Sunday a ceasefire in Gaza had resumed and that aid deliveries would restart on Monday, hours after airstrikes killed at least 26 people in response to an attack that left two Israeli soldiers dead — the toughest test yet of this month’s U.S.-brokered truce.
An Israeli security official said aid had been halted over what Israel called a “blatant” Hamas violation, but would now resume under U.S. pressure. Gaza health authorities and residents said the strikes killed at least 26 people, including a woman and a child, and hit multiple sites, among them a former school sheltering displaced people near Nuseirat.
The military said it targeted Hamas field commanders, gunmen, a tunnel and weapons depots after militants fired an anti-tank missile and shot at troops, killing two soldiers. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered a forceful response to ceasefire breaches.
Hamas’ armed wing said it remained committed to the agreement, was unaware of clashes in Rafah, and had not been in contact with groups there since March.
Amid fears the truce could collapse, residents reported explosions, gunfire and tank shelling. Some families fled parts of Khan Younis and people rushed to buy supplies at a Nuseirat market.
An Israeli security official said the “yellow line” marking military pullbacks under the deal would be physically delineated and any attempt to cross it would draw fire.
The two sides have traded accusations of violations since the ceasefire took effect on Oct. 10, halting two years of war. Israel cited Hamas’ slow handover of the bodies of deceased hostages as a sticking point. Hamas has released all 20 living captives it held and, in recent days, 12 of the 28 deceased; it says specialized equipment is needed to recover remains buried under rubble.
Israel said the Rafah crossing with Egypt — largely shut since May 2024 — would remain closed until Hamas fulfills its obligations. The ceasefire envisages an increase in aid flows to Gaza, where hundreds of thousands were assessed in August by the IPC hunger monitor as affected by famine. While shipments via another crossing had picked up since the truce began, the United Nations says far more relief is required.
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner are expected in Israel on Monday, Israeli and U.S. officials said.
Major questions remain unresolved, including Hamas’ disarmament, Gaza’s post-war governance, the composition of an international stabilization force, and steps toward a Palestinian state.