The Palestine Red Crescent said it had recorded 86 deaths and 134 injuries across Gaza early Tuesday as Israel carried out extensive strikes on the enclave.
That toll is higher than one released earlier Tuesday by Gaza’s Civil Defense, which said at least 66 people, including children, had been killed and dozens wounded.
At least 66 people have been killed and dozens wounded in a wave of Israeli strikes across Gaza, according to the enclave’s Civil Defense.
Gaza came under heavy attack early Tuesday as Israel carried out deadly strikes, which Israeli authorities said were targeting Hamas leaders.
Civil defense spokesperson Mahmoud Bassal earlier said at least five children were killed in the strikes and a number of people were trapped under rubble.
Israel’s extensive attack in Gaza early Tuesday was “preemptive,” an Israeli official said, but they declined to provide any details about what they described as Hamas’ “readiness to execute terror attacks, build up force and re-arm.”
“We cannot elaborate further, so as not to hand out information to the enemy,” the Israeli official said.
The official said the strikes targeted the Palestinian militant group’s “mid-ranking military commanders, leadership officials and terrorist infrastructure.”
The strikes will continue “as long as necessary and will expand beyond airstrikes,” the Israeli official said.
The operation is currently being overseen in Israel’s military headquarters in Tel Aviv by the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) chief of staff, alongside the head of the Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security service.
Israel notified the Trump administration ahead of its “extensive strikes” in Gaza, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
“The Trump administration and the White House were consulted by the Israelis on their attacks in Gaza tonight – and 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. All hell will break loose,” Leavitt told Fox News in an interview.
“All of the terrorists in the Middle East… Iranian-backed terror proxies and Iran themselves should take President Trump seriously when he says he’s not afraid to stand for law-abiding people.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the operation, accusing Hamas of “repeatedly” refusing to release hostages and rejecting all offers from US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and mediators.
Hamas official Basem Naim said more than 34 people had been killed by the strikes, and accused Israel of “ending the ceasefire agreement unilaterally.”
In a separate statement, Hamas declared:
“Netanyahu and his extremist government have decided to overturn the ceasefire agreement, putting the captives in Gaza at risk of an unknown fate.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the operation in Gaza, accusing Hamas of “repeatedly” refusing to release hostages and rejecting mediation offers.
“The IDF is currently attacking targets of the Hamas terrorist organization throughout the Gaza Strip, with the aim of achieving the war goals as determined by the political echelon, including the release of all our hostages — living and dead,” said a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.
“From now on, Israel will act against Hamas with increasing military force.”
Israel is conducting a wave of strikes across Gaza that have killed multiple people, throwing doubt on the fragile ceasefire as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to use “increasing military force” against Hamas.
In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces and Israeli Security Agency said early Tuesday they were “currently conducting extensive strikes” on Hamas targets in Gaza.
“Tonight we returned to fighting in Gaza,” said Defense Minister Israel Katz in a statement.
The Civil Defense in Gaza said a number people were “trapped under the rubble of homes that were bombed in various areas” of the enclave. CNN stringers in Gaza reported the sounds of strikes in multiple locations.
In Gaza City, more than 15 people, including five children, were killed and more than 20 people inured, according to the civil defense’s spokesperson Mahmoud Bassal.
In central Gaza, more than 70 injured people have arrived at the Al-Awda Hospital following strikes on homes in Nuseirat refugee camp, the hospital said.