Israel Shatters Ceasefire, Resumes Gaza Genocide: Everything You Need to Know

Gaza (Quds News Network)- More than 350 Palestinians have been killed, the majority of them women and children, in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip as Israel continues bombing the enclave since the early hours of Tuesday. Israel has resumed its genocidal war in Gaza after nearly two months of ceasefire.

The attacks began in the early hours of Tuesday morning, resulting in the killing of at least 350 civilians, the majority of whom are children, so far. Hundreds more have been injured, with many still missing under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Dozens of casualties overwhelm Gaza’s field hospitals amid the ongoing Israeli bombardment targeting residential areas across Gaza. pic.twitter.com/2fD1ClVx8t

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) March 18, 2025

Israeli air force jets carried out a series of attacks across Gaza, targeting multiple areas in the north, center, and south. Reports confirm intense bombardment of residential homes, schools, and tents housing displaced Palestinians.

Breaking | Israeli occupation aircraft bombard residential areas across Gaza City pic.twitter.com/BHkN57ApVo

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) March 18, 2025

Israel’s Justification

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered the military to take “strong action” against Hamas over its refusal to release captives or agree to offers to extend the first phase of the ceasefire.

“Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.

The Israeli military claimed that it was conducting “extensive strikes on terror targets” belonging to Hamas, adding the assault aims to achieve the ‘objectives’ set by the political leadership.

Palestinian Factions Response

Palestinian factions strongly slammed the renewed assault. Hamas stated that Netanyahu is violating the ceasefire agreement and putting Israeli captives in Gaza at risk.

Izzat al-Risheq, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, said Israel is sacrificing the lives of its remaining captives in Gaza.
“Netanyahu’s decision to return to war is a decision to sacrifice the prisoners of the occupation and a death sentence against them,” al-Risheq said in a statement shared by CNN.

“The enemy will not achieve through war and destruction what it has failed to achieve through negotiations,” he added.

Hamas also called on people of Arab and Islamic nations, and the “free people of the world”, to take to the streets in protest over Israel’s devastating attack on Gaza.

Hamas urged people across the world to “raise their voice in rejection of the resumption of the Zionist war of extermination against our people in the Gaza Strip”.

The Islamic Jihad Movement stated that Netanyahu is deliberately sabotaging peace efforts and committing further massacres.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine urged international bodies to intervene immediately to stop the genocidal war.

US Involvement

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Israel had consulted with United States President Donald Trump about the strikes.

Trump had threatened that Hamas, the Houthis, Iran, and other enemies of Israel would pay a heavy price for any aggression.

What Happened?

Tensions have escalated over the past days.

U.S. envoy Steven Witkoff criticized Hamas for rejecting a new proposal, calling their response “totally unacceptable.” Speaking to CNN, Witkoff also threatened Hamas telling them to “watch what we are doing to the Houthis” and said the opportunity for a deal was closing fast.

Witkoff’s threats were considered unprofessional and inappropriate, especially since the US is supposed to be a mediator ensuring that all parties uphold the ceasefire agreement. Hamas continues to affirm its commitment to the agreement, while Israel openly declares its intention to keep violating it.

But what exactly did Hamas reject? And why was its response deemed unacceptable?

The Proposal Hamas Rejected

Witkoff, along with U.S. officials, presented a proposal aimed at extending the first phase of a ceasefire without a full withdrawal from Gaza or a permanent halt to Israeli operations.

The plan included:

* The release of five living Israeli prisoners, including American-Israeli soldier Eidan Alexander.
* The return of the bodies of four other Israeli prisoners.
* The release of a significant number of Palestinian detainees in Israeli jails.

According to Witkoff, Israel was informed about the proposal before and after its presentation. After two to three days, Hamas responded with conditions that the U.S. and Israel found unacceptable.

Hamas’ Response and Conditions

Hamas agreed to release Alexander and the four bodies but only as part of a broader deal, reported Al Jazeera.
Their conditions included:

* Continuing all previous ceasefire commitments.
* Immediately resuming talks for the second phase of the agreement.
* A commitment to negotiating a permanent ceasefire and full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
* Opening border crossings and allowing humanitarian aid, trade, and reconstruction supplies into Gaza.
* A guarantee from mediators, including the U.S., Egypt, and Qatar, that negotiations would lead to a lasting truce.

Hamas insisted that their response was in line with the January 17 ceasefire deal. They rejected any attempt to create a new agreement that ignored the original terms.

Why the U.S. and Israel Rejected Hamas’ Terms

Israel wanted a different exchange ratio. Their counteroffer included:
* The release of 11 live Israeli prisoners, including Alexander.
* The return of 16 bodies.
* The release of 120 Palestinian detainees serving life sentences and 1,110 others.
* The return of 160 Palestinian bodies from Gaza.

Israel also demanded medical reports and proof of life for Israeli prisoners before negotiations.

Hamas’s React to Witkoff’s Threats

Hamas official Osama Hamdan stated on Monday that Witkoff’s ideas were limited to ending the ceasefire agreement, focusing solely on a prisoner exchange without addressing the broader issues of the war’s end or lifting the siege on Gaza.

“Witkoff’s proposal doesn’t address the war, opening borders, or ending the blockade,” Hamdan stated. “It is not acceptable to ignore the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, where the siege, hunger, and border closures persist.”

Hamdan emphasized that Hamas remains committed to the original ceasefire agreement, stating, “We demand the entry of medical equipment and supplies to lift debris, and the return to the agreement or acceptance of our proposal for releasing the Israeli soldier with dual nationality.”

Furthermore, he explained that mediators, including the U.S., had failed to press Israel into engaging in the second phase of the ceasefire agreement. “We are ready to implement any step that facilitates the agreement, but we cannot accept returning to square one,” Hamdan said.

He also pointed out that Washington had not pressured Israel to enter negotiations for the second phase. Instead, the U.S. suggested the release of an Israeli soldier with dual nationality as part of a proposal that lacked broader peace commitments.

Israel Violates Ceasefire

Since the first phase ended on March 1, Israel has imposed a blockade on Gaza, preventing food, water, fuel, and medicine from entering the enclave.

On March 3, Israel cut off the only electricity line that fed Gaza from Israel and had been restored months earlier to support the productivity of a central water desalination plant in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza. This line was providing drinking water daily to both residents and displaced people.

Israel’s decision came after Hamas refused to accept the extension of the first phase of the ceasefire deal, noting it will only release captives in phases, per the ceasefire agreement, which Israel is now refusing to continue.

Israel said that it had accepted a last-minute proposal put on the table by Witkoff.
Hamas said it would only accept moving to the second stage, which was supposed to guarantee the definitive end of the assault, an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and the release of remaining captives.

Hamas stated that Israel has continued to violate the ceasefire, which has resulted in the killing of many civilians in Gaza and the disruption of the humanitarian protocol.

This includes blocking the entry of sheltering and relief aid, further aggravating the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

According to Gaza’s Government Media Office, Israel has committed more than 1300 violations of the ceasefire agreement.

“Weaponizing Starvation”

Israel’s blockade of aid has been met with widespread condemnation and accusations of using starvation as a weapon of war.

Several Arab countries, including ceasefire mediators, and international humanitarian organizations slammed the move, expressing rejection of using food as a weapon of war and starving civilians.

A group of more than 30 UN human rights experts said Thursday that Israel has resumed “weaponizing starvation” in Gaza.
The move “flagrantly breaches international law and any prospects of peace”, the independent UN experts said in a statement.

“We are alarmed by Israel’s decision to suspend once again all goods and supplies, including life-saving humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip,” they added.

“As the occupying power, Israel is always obliged to ensure sufficient food, medical supplies and other relief services. By deliberately cutting vital supplies, including those relating to sexual and reproductive health, and assistive devices for persons with disabilities, Israel is once again weaponizing aid.”

The statement added that such blockades violate international humanitarian and human rights laws and are considered war crimes and crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute.

Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks stalled

Mediators were working to secure a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas over the past days. Israel said it wants the immediate release of 11 living captives and half of the 35 captive bodies held in Gaza. In exchange, mediators said Israel would open crossings to allow aid into Gaza again and extend the ceasefire for another 50 days.

Witkoff was in Qatar last week for ceasefire talks. But the U.S. had not published a firm timeline for reaching an end of the war — a key demand of Hamas.

The U.S. also said Hamas must immediately release U.S.-Israeli soldier Edan Alexander.

Hamas said in a statement it would release Alexander and the bodies of four dual nationals as an initial gesture. A Hamas official reportedly said those bodies belong to dual U.S.-Israeli nationals. Hamas said it will do so on condition Israel commits to immediate talks toward a permanent ceasefire and an immediate troop withdrawal from Gaza’s border with Egypt — two conditions Israel is refusing.

Hamas has also said it is willing to free all its captives at the same time, instead of in batches, if Israel agrees to a lasting truce and withdraws from Gaza, but Israel’s far-right government has rejected this.

A team of Israeli negotiators met with Egyptian mediators in Cairo on Sunday to discuss the captive issue.

Reports said the Israelis came to Cairo to discuss the proposal of releasing half the living captives, and are unwilling at this stage to discuss any other proposals that include timelines for ending the war or withdrawing from Gaza’s border with Egypt.

The talks are reportedly stalled now following Israel’s attacks.

“Correct and Justified”

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the return “to intensive attacks” on Gaza is a gradual process that had been planned since the new Israeli army chief of staff took office earlier this month.

He added the return to war will be “completely different” from before.

Meanwhile, former National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said that returning to fighting is a “correct and justified step”.