Israeli air strikes on Gaza continue after the announcement of the ceasefire agreement

Israeli air strikes in Gaza continue ahead of the ceasefire and hostage agreement with Hamas, which takes effect on Sunday, subject to approval by the Israeli Cabinet.

The Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza reported that the raids killed 62 people overnight, after the deal was announced.

The Gaza Civil Defense Service estimated a higher number, saying that at least 73 people were killed and hundreds were injured.

The Ministry of Health said that among the victims were 12 people who lived in a residential complex in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in Gaza City.

The Israeli military initially said a “shell landed” in southern Israel on Thursday, but later said it had been misidentified.

Israel had previously launched air strikes in the period preceding the entry into force of the ceasefire arrangements, the most recent of which was in Lebanon, where Heavy bombing It struck the capital, Beirut, just hours before a ceasefire there in November.

The Israeli Prime Minister was Benjamin Netanyahu It is expected that Gaza will be ratified Ceasefire agreement Netanyahu appeared in parliament on Thursday, but his office claims Hamas “backed out” on parts of the agreement, leading to a “last-minute crisis.”

He added that the government will not meet until Hamas accepts “all elements of the agreement.”

A senior Hamas official told the BBC that his movement is committed to the agreement announced by the mediators, and that the head of its delegation, Khalil Al-Hayya, officially informed Qatar and Egypt of their approval of all terms of the agreement.

Two hard-line right-wing ministers, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, have long threatened to withdraw from the government coalition if the ceasefire goes ahead.

Observers say this could lead to new elections in Israel, but their resignations will not hinder the deal if Netanyahu wants it to happen.

The Prime Minister of Qatar, who mediated the negotiations, called for “calm” from both sides before the start of the first phase of the six-week ceasefire agreement.

This will see 33 hostages – including women, children and the elderly – exchanged with Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons.

Israeli forces will also withdraw to the east, away from densely populated areas of Gaza.

Displaced Palestinians will be allowed to begin returning to their homes, and hundreds of aid trucks will finally be allowed to enter the area every day.

Negotiations on the second phase – which is supposed to see the release of the remaining hostages, the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces and a return to “sustainable calm” – are scheduled to begin on the 16th.

The third and final phase will include the return of any remaining hostage bodies and the reconstruction of Gaza, something that could take years.

Achim Steiner of the United Nations Development Program told the BBC's Newsday program that rebuilding Gaza will pose a major challenge, given the massive destruction caused by the war.

He said 40 million tons of “toxic” rubble needed to be removed before Gazans could return to their homes.

“This is a very complex task that we are facing now,” he said.

Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas — which Israel, the United States and others designate as a terrorist organization — in response to an unprecedented cross-border attack on October 7, 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage. .

More than 46,700 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in the Strip.

Most of the population of 2.3 million people have been displaced, there is widespread destruction, and there are severe shortages of food, fuel, medicine and shelter, as relief agencies struggle to get aid to those in need.

Israel says 94 hostages are still being held by Hamas, and 34 of them are presumed dead. In addition, there were four Israelis who were kidnapped before the war, two of whom died.