Israeli fighter jets strike Hamas targets in Gaza as ceasefire ends Over 20 deaths reported

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has said its fighter jets are striking Hamas targets in Gaza, after the deadline for another ceasefire extension passed without any agreement being announced.

Rockets have also been launched from Gaza, according to Sky News.

"Israel Defence Forces fighter jets are currently striking Hamas terrorist sites in Gaza," the publication stated.

According to the IDF press service, air-raid sirens then sounded in communities near the Palestinian enclave - in the kibbutzim of Holit, Sufa and Nir Yitzhak.

Moreover, at least 21 Palestinians have been killed since Israel resumed attacks on Gaza after the expiration of the truce, according to health officials.

The Gaza Health Minister said that of those 21, two people were killed in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip; seven people - at Maghazi, central Gaza Strip; one - in Khan Younis city, southern Gaza Strip; two in Hamad town, south of Khan Younis; nine in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

The Israeli army is said to drop leaflets telling people in parts of already bombarded southern Gaza to evacuate, signalling an expanding offensive.

Meanwhile, Israeli officials confirmed Israel’s intelligence services are preparing to kill Hamas leaders around the world when the nation’s war in the Gaza Strip winds down, setting the stage for a yearslong campaign to hunt down militants responsible for the October 7 massacres.

The new plans would mark a second chance for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who ordered a botched 1997 attempt to poison Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in Jordan. The well-documented attempt instead led to the release of Hamas’s spiritual leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.

The assassination campaign would be an extension of Israel’s decadeslong clandestine operations that have become the subject of both Hollywood legend and worldwide condemnation.

For years, countries such as Qatar, Lebanon, Iran, Russia and Türkiye have provided Hamas, a US-designated terrorist group, with a measure of protection. Israel has at times refrained from targeting the Palestinian militants to avoid creating diplomatic crises.

In addition, as hostilities in the Gaza Strip resumed, Netanyahu’s Office announced that Israel aims to free hostages and eliminate the Palestinian radical movement Hamas.  

"Returning to the hostilities, we emphasise: the government of Israel is committed to achieving the goals of the war," the report specified.

The office of the prime minister of the Jewish state drew attention that the main objectives are the release of hostages, the destruction of Hamas and the achievement of guarantees that there will never again be a threat to the inhabitants of Israel from the Gaza Strip.

As for the destruction in the enclave, a United Nations-led aid consortium estimates that more than 234,000 homes have been damaged across Gaza and 46,000  destroyed, amounting to about 60 per cent of the housing stock in the territory, which is home to some 2.3 million Palestinians.

In the north, the destruction of homes and civilian infrastructure “severely compromises the ability to meet basic requirements to sustain life”, it said.

Israel’s bombardment and ground offensive have displaced more than 1.8 million people, nearly 80 per cent of Gaza’s population, with most having sought refuge in the south, according to the UN humanitarian affairs office.

Israeli troops have barred people from returning to the north during the ceasefire.