As Israel launches airstrikes in Gaza ending a weeks-long standoff over extending the ceasefire, the White House has confirmed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had consulted US President Donald Trump before restarting the attack. Israel launched a wave of airstrikes across the Gaza Strip early Tuesday.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News that the Trump administration and the White House were consulted by the Israelis on their attacks in Gaza tonight. "As President Trump has made it clear - Hamas, the Houthis, Iran, 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," the White House spokesperson said.
Trump too had earlier warned Hamas that "all hell will break loose" if it doesn't release hostages.
Netanyahu too cited the same reason for the renewed attack, stating he instructed the military to take "strong action" against Hamas in Gaza in response to the group's refusal to release hostages and rejection of all ceasefire proposals. "This comes after Hamas repeatedly refused to release our hostages and rejected all offers it received from the U.S. presidential envoy, Steve Witkoff, and from the mediators," Netanyahu's office said. "Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength."
Intense Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip with dozens of fighter jets carrying out strikes in the surprise offensive. Palestinians reporting at least 15 killed and dozens of wounded.
— Ariel Oseran أريئل أوسيران (@ariel_oseran) March 18, 2025
The ceasefire is officially over. pic.twitter.com/OflKKCud9U
Defense Minister Israel Katz too instructed the IDF to "act forcefully" against Hamas after it refused to release Israeli hostages.
Meanwhile, Hamas has warned that Israel's government was responsible for an unprovoked escalation against Palestinians. It said Israel's new airstrikes early Tuesday "breached their ceasefire and put the fate of hostages in jeopardy."
"The international community faces a moral test: either it allows the return of the crimes committed by the occupation army or it enforces a commitment to ending the aggression and war against innocent people in Gaza," Taher Nunu, a Hamas official, was quoted by Reuters.
Gaza's Ministry of Health said at least 44 people were killed in the airstrikes early Tuesday. The urban refugee camp of Bureij in central Gaza was hit while a school serving as a shelter for displaced Palestinians was also struck. A 52-year-old man and his 16-year-old nephew died in the attacks.
The IDF claims it struck militants planting explosives in the ground near Israeli troops. However, Hamas claims the men were collecting firewood.
