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Gaza, March 18, 2025

Slain Palestinians from Sallout family in Deir Al-Balah. Published by IMEMC News

Protest demanding the release of all hostages, in Tel Aviv, last week.Credit: Amir Cohen/Reuters. Published by Haaretz

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by IMEMC News
March 18, 2025

Update: The number of slain Palestinians due to Israeli bombing of Gaza, Tuesday, has exceeded 400, with the highest numbers of deaths and injuries are among children and women, across the coastal enclave.

Among the Palestinians killed, over seventy-seven were from Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, while at least 20 were from northern Gaza.

More than sixteen members of the Barhoum family lost their lives, and dozens were injured when Israeli forces shelled tents housing displaced families on Khamsa Street, north of the city.

At least ten Palestinians were killed, and dozens more injured, when a missile struck the home of Dr. Ayman Abu Teir in Abasan, east of Khan Younis. The Palestinian Health Ministry reported that Israeli airstrikes on apartments in Hamad City, north of Khan Younis, have destroyed over ninety-five residential units.

In Rafah, located in Gaza’s southernmost region, a missile targeted the home of Dr. Majeda Abu Aker and another belonging to the Abu Rayas family, resulting in the deaths of fifteen Palestinians and injuries to dozens more.

In Jabalia, northern Gaza, at least one Palestinian was killed, and many others were injured when Israeli forces bombed a home belonging to the Al-Anqah family.

The Al-Awda Hospital in Tal Az-Za’tar, east of Jabalia, reported that eight Palestinians, including six children, were killed by Israeli missiles and shells in northern Gaza.

Several fatalities and injuries occurred when a missile struck a home in Gaza’s Old City and an apartment in the western part of the city. Additional casualties, including fatalities, were reported following a missile strike in the Shuja’iyya neighborhood, east of Gaza City.

In central Gaza, the Al-Awda Hospital in Nuseirat confirmed four deaths and seventy injuries, while the Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir Al-Balah received the bodies of seventeen Palestinians, mostly women and children, killed in Israeli airstrikes on the central district.

Israel and the Unites States placed the blame of Israel’s sudden and deadly bombing on Gaza, entirely on Hamas, with White House National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes, claiming that Hamas refused to release the Israeli hostages, “and instead chose war.”

On its part, Hamas said it remained in compliance of all terms of phase one of the mediated ceasefire deal, which was signed on January 17, after being mediated by Egypt and Qatar, while the US was the guarantor.

Al-Jazeera English said Israel, supported by the Trump administration, was the party that refused to being the implementation of phase two of the mediated ceasefire deal.

Al-Jazeera added that “When the US proposed, through hostage envoy Adam Boehler, that Hamas release an Israeli-American prisoner and the bodies of four captives, Hamas agreed on the grounds that phase two of the ceasefire be implemented. Israel rejected the proposal.”

The Government Media Office in Gaza has issued a statement addressing the latest wave of deadly Israeli attacks on Gaza, highlighting that the majority of casualties are women, children, and the elderly, with entire families among the victims.

“These horrific massacres by the Israeli occupation forces demonstrate that their approach is rooted in violence, destruction, and acts of genocide,” the statement asserted.

The office also noted that the attacks coincide with an ongoing blockade of Gaza, now entering its third week, which it described as a deliberate strategy to crush the resilience of the Palestinian people.

Despite the escalation, the statement emphasized that the people of Gaza remain steadfast and committed to their legitimate struggle for liberation, vowing not to be deterred by these atrocities.

The media office called on the international community, including the United Nations, human rights organizations, and aid groups, to take urgent action to hold Israeli leaders accountable and to oppose these actions. “The world must not remain silent,” the statement concluded.

In the early hours of Tuesday, Israeli forces resumed extensive bombing and shelling across the devastated, besieged, and starved Gaza Strip. A series of wide-ranging airstrikes and fire barrages killed more than 300 Palestinians, including at least 90 in southern Gaza, and injured hundreds, most of whom are children and women. Dozens of residents remain trapped under the rubble of targeted homes.

Israel and the Unites States placed the blame of Israel’s sudden and deadly bombing on Gaza, entirely on Hamas, with White House National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes, claiming that Hamas refused to release the Israeli hostages, “and instead chose war.”

On its part, Hamas said it remained in compliance of all terms of phase one of the mediated ceasefire deal, which was signed on January 17, after being mediated by Egypt and Qatar, while the US was the guarantor.

Al-Jazeera English said Israel, supported by the Trump administration, was the party that refused to being the implementation of phase two of the mediated ceasefire deal.

Published on Mar 18, 2025, at 06:44: In the early hours of Tuesday, Israeli forces resumed extensive bombing and shelling across the devastated, besieged, and starved Gaza

Media sources reported that five Palestinians, including two children, were killed and dozens injured at the Kuwait Specialized Field Hospital following Israeli strikes on several tents housing displaced families in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis, southern Gaza.

Additionally, over 15 fatalities, including five children, and more than 20 injuries were reported at a hospital in Gaza City after Israeli airstrikes targeted the area.

Dozens of injuries were also treated at Al-Awda Hospital in Nuseirat, following strikes on residential homes in the Nuseirat and Al-Bureij refugee camps in central Gaza.

Health officials at Al-Awda Hospital confirmed that 14 fatalities were received after strikes on two tents in southern Gaza, along with over 70 injured individuals, some in critical condition, due to attacks on homes in the refugee camp.

Al-Awda Hospital in Tal Az-Za’atar, located in Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, reported eight fatalities, including six children, and dozens of injuries following Israeli airstrikes and bombings on residential homes in northern Gaza.

Health sources also confirmed casualties from airstrikes targeting the homes of the Suleiman and Abu Tair families in Abasan Al-Kabira, east of Khan Younis, as well as strikes on tents housing displaced families in the Mawasi area west of the city.

Also in Khan Younis, many casualties were reported when Israeli missiles struck apartments in Hamad city.

Many casualties were also reported after Israeli forces bombed a school sheltering displaced families in the Daraj neighborhood of Gaza City, three homes on Al-Sina’a Street in Tel Al-Hawa, and additional homes in the Al-Bureij and Nuseirat refugee camps in central Gaza.

Rescue teams are facing immense challenges in reaching the targeted areas due to the ongoing heavy bombardment and destruction by Israeli aircraft and artillery.

This renewed assault on Gaza comes two months after a ceasefire agreement, raising concerns about worsening humanitarian conditions in the besieged territory amid continued blockades and shortages of medical and humanitarian supplies.

In the early hours of Tuesday, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the resumption of attacks on the Gaza Strip, claiming to target sites associated with Hamas.

The Israeli Ministry of Defense stated that military operations would escalate gradually and with significant intensity in the coming hours.

Netanyahu’s office also noted that he and Defense Minister Yisrael Katz had instructed the military to carry out “intensified strikes against Hamas.” In a joint statement issued by the Israeli army and the General Security Service (Shin Bet), it was confirmed that “extensive targeting of Hamas sites in the Gaza Strip” was being conducted under directives from the political leadership.

Palestinian sources, supported by video documentation, reported that Israeli airstrikes targeted tents housing displaced families, schools sheltering hundreds of families, and several mosques.

On Monday evening, two Palestinians were killed and many injured when an Israeli drone fired a missile at an area in the eastern part of the Al-Bureij refugee camp.

The fatalities came shortly after an Israeli drone injured four Palestinians while tanks fired barrages of live rounds at the Salam neighborhood, east of Rafah, in Gaza’s southernmost region.

Many Palestinians were also killed and others injured when an Israeli drone fired a missile at displaced Palestinians in Wadi Gaza, in the central part of the coastal region.

The resumption of Israeli genocide on the Gaza Strip comes two months after a fragile ceasefire, during which dozens of Palestinians were killed and injured in numerous Israeli violations, amid fears of a worsening humanitarian situation in the Strip due to the ongoing blockade and the cutting of medical and humanitarian supplies.

The ongoing blockade and the disruption of medical and humanitarian supplies continue to exacerbate the crisis.

Israeli Defense Minister, Ti stated that the bombing resumed because “Hamas did not release the captives” and “continues to pose a threat.” He further declared that “the gates of hell will be opened in Gaza if all captives are not released.”

In a statement, Hamas accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government of reneging on the ceasefire agreement.

The statement declared, “We hold Netanyahu and the Zionist occupation fully responsible for the consequences of this treacherous aggression on Gaza.”

It further added, “Netanyahu and his government have decided to overturn the ceasefire agreement, exposing the Israeli captives in Gaza to an uncertain fate.”

Hamas called on mediators to hold Netanyahu and the Israeli occupation accountable for violating and overturning the agreement.

The statement also urged the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to fulfill their responsibilities in supporting the Palestinian people and breaking the siege on Gaza. Additionally, it called on the United Nations and the UN Security Council to convene and enforce Resolution 2735, which demands an end to the onslaught.
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Editorial | Israel, Not Hamas, Is Derailing the Gaza Cease-fire and Preventing the Hostages' Return

Haaretz
March 19, 2025

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu paid the asking price for Itamar Ben-Gvir's return to the government in advance. Not out of his own pocket, of course, but with the blood of the 59 hostages whose fate could be sealed by the resumption of the war, which has already sealed the fate of hundreds of Palestinians, including women and children.

On Tuesday, Eliya Cohen, who was freed from Hamas captivity, called the renewed warfare a "death sentence" for the hostages. But that interests the prime minister less than his reward in the form of the homecoming of Ben-Gvir's Otzma Yehudit party.

According to the statement released by Netanyahu's office, the decision to strike Gaza was made with Defense Minister Israel Katz after "Hamas' repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all the proposals it has received from U.S. Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff and from the mediators."

But it must be said, loudly and clearly, that this is a lie. It was Israel, not Hamas, that violated the agreement. On its 16th day, the parties were supposed to begin discussing the second phase, which was supposed to end with the release of all the remaining hostages. Israel refused.

Israel also broke its promise to withdraw from the Philadelphi corridor between the 42nd and the 50th day of the cease-fire. Moreover, Israel announced that it was halting the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza and closing the border crossings. This decision, like the energy minister's decision to halt the limited amount of electricity Israel provides to Gaza, explicitly violates Israel's commitment in the agreement that aid will continue entering as long as talks on the second stage are ongoing.

All the proposals that Hamas received from Witkoff stem from Israel's refusal to uphold its part of the deal. Consequently, the attempt to portray Hamas' rejection of Witkoff's proposals as a reason to resume the fighting is nothing but a dishonest manipulation.

Israel – not Hamas – is the one preventing the deal's implementation and the hostages' return. The statement issued by Netanyahu's office also said that the goal of the renewed attack on Gaza is "to achieve the objectives of the war as they have been determined by the political echelon, including the release of all of our hostages, the living and the deceased."

That's another lie. Military pressure endangers the hostages, and of course also the lives of Israeli soldiers and Gaza residents, while also destroying what remains of the territory.

Netanyahu abandoned the hostages to save his government. The outcry from the hostages' families and hostages who have returned interests neither him nor the members of his governing coalition. For them, the main thing is the approval of the state budget. Or as Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich told Ayala Metzger, whose father-in-law Yoram Metzger was abducted on October 7, 2023 and killed in Hamas captivity, "We heard you. Now get out. Thank you very much."

A demonstration by most of the anti-government protest organizations is planned to take place in Jerusalem on Wednesday. The public must join the hostages' families and demand a resumption of the cease-fire and the signing and implementation of the second stage of the deal. The hostages' lives are in growing danger. We must save them.

The above article is Haaretz's lead editorial, as published in the Hebrew and English newspapers in Israel.