Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to use “increasing military strength” against Hamas as Israel carried out lethal attacks around Gaza, shattering the fragile ceasefire early on 18th March. More than 340 people have reportedly been killed and many others wounded in what the Israeli military declared are “extensive strikes” in the Gaza Strip, according to the health ministry operated by Hamas.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported to be pursuing “terror targets” that were owned by Hamas. According to reports, a strike has killed Mahmoud Abu Wafah, Gaza’s deputy interior minister and the top Hamas security official in the region. Notably, an agreement to extend the ceasefire in Gaza has not been reached. Overnight, the bombardments hit several areas including northern Gaza, Gaza City and the Deir al-Balah, Khan Younis and Rafah.
According to the Israeli military, which proclaimed to have attack hundreds of targets, in the “preemptive” action, the strikes would continue for as long as needed and could go beyond airstrikes, increasing the likelihood that Israeli ground forces would return to the battlefield. The development came after weeks of futile attempts to reach an extension of the ceasefire agreed upon on 19th January. The fresh assault was significantly larger in scope than the regular series of drone attacks the Israeli military carried out against individuals or small groups of suspected terrorists.
The action was ordered by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, based on an official statement. “This follows their (Hamas) repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all of the proposals it has received from US Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff and from the mediators. Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength,” it informed.
The strategy “was approved by the political leadership after being presented by the IDF over the weekend,” the statement stated. An Israeli official expressed that Israel was targeting infrastructure, leaders and soldiers of Hamas. He charged that Hamas was trying to reorganize and set up new operations. Security forces and Hamas terrorists had swiftly returned to the streets in the weeks following the ceasefire’s implementation.
According to Israel Katz, if the hostages are not freed, the “gates of hell will open in Gaza” and warned, “We will not stop fighting until all of our hostages are home and we have achieved all of the war goals.” Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the the United Nations, announced that “we will show no mercy on our enemies” unless they free all the captives. Hamas has “repeatedly refused to release our hostages” and rejected offers from U.S. President Donald Trump’s Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, per the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Israel informed the White House before launching the offensive
A White House spokesperson told Fox News that Israel consulted with Donald Trump’s administration before launching the offensive. “As President Trump has made it clear, Hamas, the Houthis, all those who seek to terrorize not just Israel but also the United States of America, will see a price to pay,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt highlighted. Meanwhile, Hamas responded by accusing Netanyahu of “putting the captives in Gaza at risk of an unknown fate” by choosing to revoke the ceasefire deal.
🇮🇱 🇺🇸 White House Spokesperson:
— Vivid.🇮🇱 (@VividProwess) March 18, 2025
"The White House was consulted by Israel on their attacks on Gaza tonight. President Trump was clear: Hamas, Houthis, all those who seek to terrorize Israel and the U.S. will pay a price. All hell will break loose."pic.twitter.com/iawRPgtqry
For the past two weeks, Israel has prevented food and other humanitarian supplies from entering Gaza to put pressure on Hamas to free more hostages. Additionally, Israel turned off the only remaining power-generating facility in Gaza. The Israeli strikes follow days after the United States proposed a new plan to extend the ceasefire for another month in exchange for the release of a few surviving captives detained by Hamas.
The US suggested prolonging the first phase until the middle of April, which would include another swap of Israeli-held Palestinian inmates and hostages detained by Hamas. However, a Palestinian official with knowledge of the negotiations disclosed that Israel and Hamas couldn’t agree on important points of the agreement that Witkoff outlined during the indirect negotiations.
The fresh attacks occurred two months after the war was put on hold by a ceasefire. During the first phase of the truce, Hamas released over three dozen captives over six weeks in return for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. However, since the ceasefire ended two weeks ago, the opposing parties have been unable to come to an agreement on how to proceed with a second phase that would try to end the war and free remaining 60 hostages that are still alive. The Israeli military has been operating inside Gaza ever since the ceasefire was established.
On 7th October 2023 Hamas killed over 1,200 people in southern Israel, primarily civilians and took 251 hostage, sparking the recent conflict between Israel and Hamas.
