27 Killed in Gaza as Israel and Hamas Exchange Ceasefire Violation Accusations

Wednesday's strikes were among the deadliest in Gaza since the ceasefire implementation, according to official reports.

Israeli air strikes on Gaza resulted in 27 fatalities on Wednesday, as reported by officials in the Strip, with both Israel and Hamas exchanging accusations of violating the fragile ceasefire agreement in the Palestinian territory.

These strikes represent some of the most lethal attacks in Gaza since the truce began last month, occurring simultaneously as Israel announced multiple operations targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon, despite a ceasefire there that has lasted nearly a year.

According to Gaza's civil defence agency, which functions under Hamas authority, 14 individuals lost their lives in Gaza City in the north, while another 13 perished in the Khan Yunis area in the south. Two hospitals contacted by AFP confirmed these casualty figures.

The Israeli military justified the strikes, claiming they were targeting Hamas after militants allegedly opened fire toward an area where troops were operating in southern Gaza, which they described as a "violation of the ceasefire agreement."

Hamas rejected this accusation, condemning the attacks as a "dangerous escalation" that could potentially undermine the truce, which has largely remained intact since October 10 despite occasional flare-ups.

Ahraf Abu Sultan, a 50-year-old resident, told AFP that he had only returned to his home in Gaza City with his family on Sunday after being displaced in the south for a year.

"We barely managed to repair one room in our destroyed house to try and settle down just two days ago, and the bombing and death has started again. They don't even give us a chance to breathe," he recounted.

Fellow Gaza City resident Nivine Ahmed described how she had been conversing with a neighbor when Israel's bombardment "turned everything upside down in a second."

"We heard the sound of explosions and saw the smoke rising. People were running and the ambulance sirens were wailing, carrying away the martyrs," she stated.

"Next time the missile could fall on us."

The ongoing situation has complicated efforts to implement Trump's peace plan.

Due to media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties accessing many areas, AFP is unable to independently verify the casualty figures and details provided by both parties.

The highest daily death toll recorded since the truce implementation was on October 29, when over 100 people were killed in Israeli strikes, according to civil defence figures and data collected by AFP from five Gaza hospitals.

Israel has conducted repeated strikes against what it identifies as Hamas targets during the ceasefire, resulting in more than 280 Palestinian fatalities, according to the health ministry in Hamas-governed Gaza.

The truce is founded on a US-brokered agreement that also included the return to Israel of the final 48 hostages held by militants.

While all living hostages were released early in the ceasefire, the process of returning the deceased has progressed more slowly, with the bodies of three hostages still remaining in Gaza.

The implementation of the second phase of US President Donald Trump's peace plan remains unresolved, particularly regarding the disarmament of Hamas, establishing a transitional authority, and deploying an international stabilization force.

The UN Security Council voted Monday in favor of a US-drafted resolution endorsing Trump's plan, though Hamas rejected the resolution as failing to address Palestinians' "political and humanitarian demands."

The conflict began with Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in 1,221 deaths.

Israel's retaliatory campaign in Gaza has claimed at least 69,513 lives, according to figures from the health ministry that the UN considers reliable.

Meanwhile, Israel conducted several strikes in southern Lebanon on Wednesday.

The military reported targeting Hezbollah weapons storage facilities in multiple towns, accusing the Iran-backed group of attempting to rebuild its capabilities.

Despite a ceasefire established last November aimed at ending more than a year of hostilities with Hezbollah, the Israeli military has maintained frequent air strikes in Lebanon.

These raids followed a strike the previous day that killed 13 people in a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon, which Israel claimed targeted Hamas members—making it the deadliest attack in Lebanon since the truce began.

On Wednesday, Israel's top leadership visited Israeli troops stationed inside Syrian territory in a buffer zone designed to separate the two countries' forces.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told troops that their presence was of "immense importance" to Israel's security.

Damascus strongly condemned the visit, characterizing it as "a serious violation of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity."