The Gaza health ministry said that 46 children and 20 women were among the 104 people killed in Israeli strikes
\n CAIRO\/JERUSALEM
\nThe Israeli military said on Wednesday that it will abide by a ceasefire accord in Gaza, as health officials in the enclave said airstrikes had killed 104 people, with both sides trading blame for violations of the deal.
\nIsrael launched airstrikes in Gaza late on Tuesday, saying it acted after an attack by Palestinian militants killed one soldier, in the latest challenge to an already fragile ceasefire.
\nThe Israeli military said in a statement that it would continue to uphold the ceasefire agreement and would respond firmly to \u201cany violation.\u201d
\nCeasefire not at risk, Trump says
\nUS President Donald Trump said that the US-backed ceasefire was not at risk, even as Israeli planes struck across Gaza, with Israel and militant group Hamas blaming each other for breaches of the truce.
\nThe Gaza health ministry said that 46 children and 20 women were among the 104 people killed in Israeli strikes since Tuesday. Reuters couldn\u2019t immediately verify the numbers, but Reuters video showed several bodies of women and children inside a hospital during funeral processions.
\n\u201cAs I understand it, they took out an Israeli soldier,\u201d Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. \u201cSo the Israelis hit back and they should hit back. When that happens, they should hit back,\u201d he added.
\nThe Israeli military confirmed the soldier\u2019s death on Wednesday.
\n\u201cNothing is going to jeopardize\u201d the ceasefire, Trump said. \u201cYou have to understand Hamas is a very small part of peace in the Middle East, and they have to behave.\u201d
\nIsrael says Hamas attacked soldiers within \u201cyellow line\u201d
\nSome displaced Palestinians feared the truce was falling apart. Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three children, recalled the sounds of explosions throughout the night, a reminder of a war that has killed tens of thousands.
\n\u201cIt was one of the worst nights since the ceasefire was signed. The sounds of explosions and planes made us feel as if war had started again,\u201d Zayda, who lives in tents in western Gaza City with his 25-member family, told Reuters via a chat app.
\nAn Israeli military official said Hamas had violated the ceasefire by carrying out an attack against Israeli forces who were stationed within the so-called \u201cyellow line,\u201d the deployment line agreed upon in the ceasefire.
\nHamas denied responsibility for the attack on Israeli forces in Rafah, in southern Gaza, and said in a statement that it remained committed to the ceasefire deal.
\nThe agreement went into effect on October 10, halting two years of war triggered by deadly Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.
\nAccord involves return of hostage remains
\nUnder the accord, Hamas released all living hostages in return for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and wartime detainees, while Israel pulled back its troops and halted its offensive.
\nHamas also agreed to hand over the remains of all dead hostages yet to be recovered, but has said that it will take time to locate and retrieve all of the bodies. Israel says the militant group can access the remains of most of the hostages.
\nThe issue has become one of the main sticking points in the ceasefire, which Trump says he is watching closely.
\nIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said human remains handed over on Monday night belonged to an Israeli killed during Hamas\u2019 October 7 attack, whose body was recovered by Israeli forces in the early weeks of fighting.
\nThe Israeli military said that Hamas had planted the remains at an excavation site before calling in a Red Cross team and pretending it had found a missing hostage, to create a \u201cfalse impression of efforts to locate bodies.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Gaza health ministry said that 46 children and 20 women were among the 104 people killed in Israeli strikes CAIRO\/JERUSALEM The Israeli military said on Wednesday that it will abide by a ceasefire accord in Gaza, as health officials in the enclave said airstrikes had killed 104 people, with both sides trading blame for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":511514,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-511496","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n