ISTANBUL

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the Israeli army on Tuesday to launch “immediate, powerful strikes” in the Gaza Strip despite a ceasefire agreement, his office said.

In a statement, Netanyahu’s office said the decision to immediately carry out powerful strikes in Gaza came after security consultations over alleged ceasefire violations by Hamas.

At least nine Palestinians were killed and several others injured in a series of Israeli attacks following Netanyahu’s order.

The move came as the public broadcaster KAN said that the premier also decided to expand the territory under the army’s control in Gaza behind the “yellow line.”

The “yellow line” refers to the zone to which Israeli forces have withdrawn under the ceasefire agreement, stretching from southern North Gaza Governorate to the outskirts of Rafah.

KAN said that the Israeli premier was coordinating with senior US officials on the move.

Netanyahu’s office, however, declined to comment on the report.

Israeli media said that the escalation came after Israeli forces came under sniper fire and anti-tank shells in the southern city of Rafah.

Hamas, however, denied any involvement in the attack, accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire deal. The group also postponed planned handover of the body of an Israeli captive.

“Any Israeli escalation will hinder search and excavation operations and the retrieval of bodies, which will delay the return of the occupiers’ dead,” the group’s armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, warned in a statement.

A senior US official told news website Axios on Tuesday that top officials in President Donald Trump’s administration informed Netanyahu’s team “they don't see it as a material breach of the deal by Hamas.”

The officials urged Israel not to take “radical measures that could push the ceasefire to the brink of collapse.”

Shortly afterward, Netanyahu convened an emergency security meeting and decided to resume airstrikes on Gaza.

“The army presented a package of possible responses, including the resumption of strikes in Gaza and an expansion of the area of Gaza that Israel still occupies under the deal”, Axios reported, citing Israeli officials.

The meeting was attended by Defense Minister Israel Katz, Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, and Shin Bet Director David Zini.

The ceasefire agreement has been in place in Gaza since Oct. 10 under Trump’s 20-point plan.

Phase one of the deal includes the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. The plan also envisages the rebuilding of Gaza and the establishment of a new governing mechanism without Hamas.

Israel has killed more than 68,500 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 170,000 others in deadly attacks in Gaza since October 2023.