The White House said that Israel had already consulted the Trump administration about the attacks on the Gaza Strip.
Israel has resumed its onslaught on the Gaza Strip, killing 419 Palestinians overnight on Tuesday and wounding more than 500, Gaza’s health ministry said.
The latest attacks shattered the Gaza ceasefire, which was brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the United States in January after 15 months of genocide waged by Israel on the besieged strip.
Israeli occupation forces launched a barrage of air strikes across the territory while Palestinians were sleeping.
Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, condemned Israel’s latest acts as “another heinous crime perpetuated by the occupation without any sense of responsibility”.
“We reiterate Qatar’s steadfast position in support of the brotherly Palestinian people, and we call for immediate and decisive international action to compel Israel to implement an immediate ceasefire, abide by the agreement, and return to negotiations,” he said in a post on X.
Israel has carried out most of the attacks in the southern Gaza Strip, targeting tents sheltering internally displaced Palestinians, Palestine’s news agency Wafa reported.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz approved the plan to resume the war over the weekend, claiming Hamas has refused to release the remaining captives.
Hamas responded to Netanyahu’s claims as “flimsy pretexts to justify its return to war and the escalation of its bloody aggression”.
“The occupation seeks to mislead public opinion and fabricate false justifications to cover up its premeditated decision to resume the genocide against defenceless civilians, showing no regard for the commitments it previously made,” Hamas said on Telegram, maintaining its commitment to the deal.
The White House also said that Israel had already consulted the Donald Trump administration about the attacks.
More than 40 Israeli captives have been killed in the previous bombardment of the Gaza Strip. Currently, there are 59 captives still in the Gaza Strip, with only 22 are still alive.
Israel had initially launched the genocidal war on October 7, 2023, following the unprecedented Hamas attacks on military bases and surrounding settlements under Operation Al-Aqsa Flood. Israel has since killed more than 61,709 Palestinians, with thousands still trapped under the rubble.
The first out of three phases of the ceasefire deal – each of which was supposed to last for 42 days – came into effect on January 19 and expired on March 1 after talks led to no breakthrough. Israel, with the backing of its top ally the U.S. sought to extend the first phase to release more captives.
This is despite Hamas fulfilling its commitment to the deal by releasing 33 captives, including eight bodies, in addition to five Thai workers over nine different releases. In exchange, Israel released 1,755 Palestinian prisoners from its jails, but only after several delays.
Israel had already violated the terms of the ceasefire by carrying out several attacks on the Gaza Strip during the first phase, killing more than 130 Palestinians, while completely blocking the entry of food, life-saving aid, and heavy equipment into the territory.
