At least 32 people have been killed in a wave of Israeli air strikes across the Gaza Strip on Saturday, according to local authorities. The Hamas-run civil defence agency said women and children were among those killed, with some attacks hitting tents and shelters housing displaced Palestinians.
One of the deadliest strikes occurred in the southern city of Khan Younis, where helicopter gunships targeted a tent sheltering displaced families. Seven members of a single family were reportedly killed in the attack. Officials said residential apartments, tents, shelters, and a police station were among the structures damaged or destroyed.
Officials at Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital confirmed that an air strike had hit a residential apartment, killing three children and two women. “We found my three little nieces in the street. They say ‘ceasefire’ and all. What did those children do? What did we do?” said Samer al-Atbash, uncle of the three children, speaking to Reuters. Video footage from across Gaza showed bodies being recovered from rubble and multiple buildings reduced to debris.
Palestinians described Saturday’s strikes as the heaviest since the second phase of the ceasefire, brokered by US President Donald Trump in October 2025, came into effect earlier this month. Both Israel and Hamas have accused each other of violating the truce since its implementation.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed that several strikes had been carried out in response to what it described as a Hamas violation of the ceasefire on Friday. In a statement, the IDF said, “Eight terrorists were identified exiting the underground terror infrastructure in eastern Rafah,” a Gaza area where Israeli forces are deployed under the October agreement.
The IDF, working alongside the Israel Security Agency (ISA), said it had targeted “four commanders and additional terrorists,” as well as a weapons storage facility, a weapons manufacturing site, and “two launch sites belonging to Hamas in the central Gaza Strip.”
Hamas condemned the strikes and called on the US to take immediate action. The group said the attacks show that the Israeli government “continues its brutal war of genocide against the strip.”
Saturday’s violence comes as Gaza’s Rafah crossing with Egypt is scheduled to reopen on Sunday, following the recovery of the body of Israel’s last hostage earlier this week. Egypt’s foreign ministry condemned the strikes and urged all parties to “exercise the utmost restraint.” Qatar, a key mediator in ceasefire negotiations, also denounced what it described as “repeated Israeli violations.”
The October 2025 ceasefire deal included a hostage-prisoner exchange, a partial Israeli withdrawal, and a surge in humanitarian aid. In January, US special envoy Steve Witkoff announced the start of phase two of the deal, which envisions the establishment of a technocratic Palestinian government in Gaza, full reconstruction, and the disarmament of Hamas and other armed groups.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas began on 7 October 2023, when Hamas launched a major attack on southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Israel responded with a large-scale military campaign in Gaza. According to the Hamas-run health ministry, more than 71,660 Palestinians have been killed since the war began. At least 509 Palestinians have died since the ceasefire began on 10 October 2025, while four Israeli soldiers have also been killed.
Although Israel has previously disputed figures from the Hamas-run health ministry, senior Israeli security sources have reportedly acknowledged that more than 70,000 Palestinians have died during the conflict. The ministry’s figures have been widely cited by the UN, human rights organizations, and international media. Israel restricts news reporting from Gaza.
The latest escalation underscores the fragility of the ceasefire and the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where civilians continue to bear the brunt of the conflict.
