Israel Strikes Hamas in Gaza: Ceasefire Crumbles Amid Tensions

Israel resumes airstrikes on Hamas in Gaza, ending a fragile ceasefire as tensions rise over hostages and aid. Explore the latest developments.

Israel Strikes Hamas in Gaza—Ceasefire Collapses Under Mounting Strain

A Fragile Truce Shatters

In the predawn hours of March 18, 2025, the Gaza Strip reverberated with the thunder of Israeli airstrikes, signaling the abrupt end of a tenuous ceasefire that had held—however imperfectly—since January 19. The Israeli military, under direct orders from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, unleashed what it described as “extensive strikes” targeting Hamas positions across the embattled enclave. Local medics reported a grim toll: at least 30 lives were lost in what they called the most ferocious aerial bombardment since the truce began, with strikes raining down on Deir Al-Balah, Gaza City, Khan Younis, and Rafah.

For weeks, the ceasefire—brokered by Arab mediators with U.S. support—teetered on the edge of collapse. Now, with plumes of smoke rising over Gaza and the echoes of explosions piercing the morning calm, that edge has given way. What began as a hopeful pause in a conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives has unraveled into a renewed cycle of violence, leaving civilians caught in the crossfire and the prospects for peace dimmer than ever.

Netanyahu’s Gambit: A Message of Force

The Israeli government wasted no time framing the escalation. In a statement from Netanyahu’s office, the strikes were cast as a decisive response to Hamas’s intransigence. “This follows Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all proposals it has received from U.S. Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff and the mediators,” the statement declared. It went further, promising that Israel would now “act against Hamas with increasing military strength.”

The message was clear: patience had run dry. Netanyahu, facing domestic pressure to secure the release of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza, appears to have opted for a show of force over continued negotiation. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) offered little detail on the operation, confirming only that it was targeting “Hamas terrorist infrastructure.” But the scale of the assault—35 airstrikes, according to the Palestinian Civil Emergency Service—spoke volumes about the shift in strategy.

For Israelis, the stakes are personal. Of the 251 hostages seized during Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack, fewer than half are believed to remain alive. The ceasefire’s first phase, which concluded on March 1, saw 25 living hostages and the remains of eight others exchanged for 1,800 Palestinian prisoners. Yet Hamas has balked at further releases, demanding that Israel move to the second phase—a full withdrawal from Gaza and a permanent end to hostilities—before proceeding. Israel, in turn, has refused, insisting on extending the initial truce to extract more captives.

Hamas Fires Back: Accusations of Sabotage

Hamas wasted no time in condemning the strikes. A senior official, speaking anonymously to Reuters, accused Israel of “unilaterally” dismantling the ceasefire, branding the attacks a deliberate attempt to derail months of diplomatic efforts. “The occupation government was intent on undermining the agreement from the start,” the official said, echoing sentiments shared across Hamas’s ranks. On Telegram, the group labeled the bombardment a “serious escalation,” pinning the blame squarely on Netanyahu’s shoulders.

The Palestinian perspective paints a starkly different picture. Beyond the immediate carnage—eight killed in Gaza City alone, including children, according to medics—Hamas and local authorities point to Israel’s broader actions as evidence of bad faith. Since March 2, Israel has enforced a total blockade on Gaza, halting all aid shipments of food, medicine, and fuel. Humanitarian groups have decried the move as “collective punishment,” a violation of international law that has plunged Gaza’s 2.3 million residents deeper into crisis. Add to that the cutting of electricity on March 9, crippling water desalination and sewage systems, and the stage was set for confrontation.

“They’re trying to starve us into submission,” said Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of Gaza’s Hamas-run media office, in a statement earlier this month. He claimed that 150 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since the ceasefire began—a slow bleed that, until now, had not provoked a full-scale response.

Caught in the Middle: Civilians Pay the Price

For the people of Gaza, the resumption of violence is a nightmare revisited. The war, which erupted after Hamas’s 2023 assault, has already displaced nearly the entire population and left 48,500 dead, mostly civilians, according to Gaza’s health ministry. Entire neighborhoods lie in ruins, reduced to rubble by 15 months of relentless bombardment. The ceasefire, fragile as it was, offered a fleeting reprieve—until it didn’t.

Eyewitnesses described scenes of chaos as the strikes hit. In Deir Al-Balah, three homes were obliterated, sending families scrambling for safety. In Khan Younis, a father wept as he pulled his daughter from the debris, her small frame limp in his arms. “We thought the worst was over,” he told a local journalist, his voice breaking. “Now it’s starting again.” The Palestinian civil emergency service struggled to respond, its resources stretched thin after weeks without aid.

Aid organizations have sounded the alarm. The United Nations reported on March 10 that “nothing” was entering Gaza, a blockade that has left hospitals on the brink of collapse and food stocks dwindling. A recent Oxfam study estimated that 80% of Gazans are now facing acute hunger, a crisis exacerbated by the latest violence. “This isn’t just a military conflict,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), in an interview with NPR. “It’s a humanitarian catastrophe engineered by policy.”

The Diplomatic Deadlock

Behind the scenes, mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and the United States have scrambled to salvage the ceasefire, a three-phase plan that once held promise. Phase one delivered a six-week pause and the initial hostage-prisoner swap. Phase two, slated for early March, was meant to usher in Israel’s withdrawal and a lasting truce. But as deadlines passed and talks stalled, both sides dug in.

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, tasked by the Trump administration with brokering peace, has faced an uphill battle. Hamas’s latest offer—to release American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander and the remains of four others in exchange for implementing the original deal—was dismissed by Washington as “entirely impractical” without a permanent ceasefire guarantee. Israel, meanwhile, labeled it “psychological warfare,” refusing to budge from its demand for more hostages first.

The impasse has left experts pessimistic. “We’re seeing a classic breakdown of trust,” said Aaron David Miller, a veteran Middle East negotiator at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, in a recent analysis. “Both sides feel they’ve given enough, and neither wants to blink.” Miller pointed to Israel’s blockade and Hamas’s hostage stance as twin flashpoints, each feeding the other’s narrative of betrayal.

A Region on Edge

The fallout extends beyond Gaza. In Lebanon, a separate ceasefire with Hezbollah—brokered after a year of cross-border clashes—remains intact, but analysts warn that renewed fighting in Gaza could destabilize the fragile calm. Iran, a key backer of both Hamas and Hezbollah, has stayed conspicuously silent, though its influence looms large.

For the United States, the stakes are diplomatic as well as moral. The Biden administration, which handed off the crisis to Trump’s team, faced criticism for failing to secure a durable peace. Now, with American citizens among the hostages, pressure is mounting on Witkoff and his colleagues to deliver. Yet as airstrikes light up the Gaza sky, that goal feels further away than ever.

What Lies Ahead

The path forward is murky as the dust settles—or rather, as it rises anew—over Gaza. Israel’s vow of “increasing military strength” suggests a return to the punishing campaigns of 2023 and 2024, when entire city blocks were leveled in pursuit of Hamas. For Palestinians, it’s a grim replay of a familiar script: survival amid chaos.

Yet amid the bleakness, voices of reason persist. Humanitarian groups call for immediate aid restoration, while diplomats urge a return to the negotiating table. “This cycle won’t end with bombs,” Whitson argued. “It ends with a deal that both sides can live with—or at least live through.”

For now, though, the bombs are speaking loudest. The ceasefire’s collapse is a stark reminder of how quickly hope can curdle into despair in the Middle East. Whether this latest chapter ends in more bloodshed or a tentative truce, one thing is certain: the people of Gaza caught between warring powers, will bear the heaviest burden.

Source:  (Reuters)

(Disclaimer:  This article is based on available information, and reflects the latest developments in the Israel-Hamas conflict. Details may evolve as events unfold, and readers are encouraged to consult primary sources for real-time updates. The views expressed are intended to inform and engage, not to endorse any party’s actions.)

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