New escalation in the Gaza Strip. According to local sources, Hamas militants launched anti-tank weapons against IDF forces a Rafahcausing heavy firefights and forcing Israel to react with mortar shells and air raids in the north and south of the Strip. This is an episode which, according to the initial assessments of the Israeli military leaders, represents a direct violation of the ceasefire reached after weeks of international negotiations.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have not yet released an official statement, but the severity of the accident has prompted the Prime Minister Benjamin NetanyahuThe Defense Minister Israel Katz and the leaders of the security apparatus to convene an emergency assessment to define the response to the new provocations by Hamas. According to the military correspondent of Channel 13, Or Hellerit was «a serious accident a Rafahin an area where the IDF is located under the ceasefire agreement. Hamas detonated a bomb against an Israeli military engineering vehicle: it is believed to be an improvised explosive device (IED) or an anti-tank charge.” After the explosion, Israeli troops responded with covering fire to extract the wounded soldiers and secure the area. “This is a serious event, with potential implications for the continuation of the agreement,” Heller added.
The Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvirhe reacted harshly, asking a Netanyahu «to order the Israel Defense Forces to fully resume combat operations in the Gaza Strip with all available forces». In a public statement, Ben Gvir said that “false illusions that Hamas can respect the signed agreement are dangerous to our national security. This Nazi terrorist organization must be completely destroyed, and the sooner it is, the better.” This is not the first time that Hamas has violated the truce. Last Friday, a group of militiamen emerged from a tunnel in the area of Khan Yunis and opened fire on Israeli troops. The IDF had responded by neutralizing the terrorists “in accordance with the agreement.” In the last few hours, even a Rafah, other armed men were spotted attempting to approach Israeli positions: they were hit before managing to inflict casualties.
Ben Gvir he then reiterated his positions during the program «Meet the Press» on Channel 12, where he revealed that he had given the prime minister “a deadline” to dismantle Hamas and introduce the death penalty for terrorists. The party leader Otzma Yehudit he has threatened to abandon the governing coalition if his conditions are not respected. “We will not be complicit in national defeat or eternal shame,” he declared, evoking an increasingly tense political climate within the Israeli government. Give it to him United States Meanwhile, a direct warning has arrived Hamas. The Department of State informed the guarantor countries of the peace agreement in Gaza of an “imminent violation of the ceasefire by Hamas against the population of the Strip”. According to Washington, “a planned attack against Palestinian civilians would constitute a serious violation of the truce and would jeopardize the progress achieved through international mediation.” If Hamas were to proceed with this attack, “measures will be taken to protect the population and preserve the integrity of the ceasefire,” the department said.
As tension grows, the Hamas leader Mohammed Nazzal he told Reuters that the Islamist movement “does not intend to leave” and wants to maintain control of security in Gaza “for a transition period”. A statement which, according to American sources, “shows the United States’ difficulties in definitively ending the war” and represents one of the main obstacles to the full implementation of the agreement. To try to save the truce, the White House special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected in the coming days in the Middle East to monitor the implementation of the so-called Trump plan for the end of the conflict. According to the Axios portal, even the vice president JD Vance will travel to Israel to coordinate with Witkoff and meet with Israeli authorities. In an interview on the «60 Minutes» program of CBS, Witkoff And Jared Kushnerthe main mediators of the ceasefire, admitted that they “felt a little betrayed” after the failed Israeli blitz in Doha against the Hamas leaders last month. However, both reiterated their commitment to “finding a stable and lasting way out of the Gaza Strip.”
In Israel, however, there is no shortage of doubts. The two correspondents of Trump they have had business relationships with the emirs of Qatar for years, who remain crucial mediators between Hamas and the international community. A political and financial entanglement that fuels doubts about the real prospects of lasting peace. The new wave of violence and the differences between the parties make the ceasefire fragile, while the Israeli government appears divided between those, such as Netanyahuwants to maintain dialogue with them United States and who, how Ben Gvirpushes for an immediate resumption of military operations. The future of the truce will now depend on how much Hamas will be willing to respect the commitments undertaken and the ability of international mediators to contain yet another spiral of fire that risks engulfing Gaza and the entire region again.
