A dispilaced Palestinian boy carries a box of emergency supplies provided by World Food Programme after receiving it from an aid distribution point in Gaza on Sunday — AFP GAZA, Oct 19 (AFP): Gaza's nine-day-old ceasefire came under strain Sunday after the Israeli army said it launched air strikes in the territory's south in response to attacks it claimed were carried out by Hamas militants against its forces.
Hamas, however, maintained it was adhering to the truce, with one official accusing Israel of devising "pretexts" to resume its own attacks.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed security forces to take "strong action against terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip", his office said in a statement, accusing Hamas of "a ceasefire violation".
The uneasy truce in the Palestinian territory, brokered by US President Donald Trump and taking effect on 10 October, brought to a halt more than two years of devastating war between Israel and Hamas.
The deal established the outline for hostage and prisoner exchanges, and was proposed alongside an ambitious roadmap for Gaza's future but has immediately faced challenges in implementation.
"Earlier today, terrorists fired anti-tank missiles and opened fire on IDF (army) forces operating to destroy terrorist infrastructure in the Rafah area in accordance with the terms of the agreement," the military said in a statement.
Israel receives bodies of
two more hostages
The Israeli government said on Sunday that Hamas has handed over more hostage remains, as delays in finding bodies buried under the rubble of Gaza threatened the fragile ceasefire.
The issue of hostage bodies still in Gaza has become a sticking point in the ceasefire implementation, with Israel linking the reopening of the main gateway into the territory to the recovery of all of the deceased.
Relief agencies have called for the Rafah border crossing from Egypt to be reopened to speed the flow of food, fuel and medicines.
Gaza rescuers, meanwhile reported fresh violence in some areas despite the truce.
Hamas's armed wing, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, handed over the remains of two hostages on Saturday night as part of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement.
Netanyahu orders
action against terrorist
targets' in Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed the country's security forces to take "strong action" against militant targets in the Gaza Strip, accusing Hamas of breaching the ceasefire.
"Following a ceasefire violation by Hamas, Prime Minister Netanyahu held consultations with the defence minister and senior security officials and instructed to take strong action against terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip," Netanyahu's office said in a statement.
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