Israel resumes ceasefire in Gaza and says aid deliveries will restart Monday

JERUSALEM AP Gaza s fragile ceasefire faced its first major test Sunday as Israeli forces launched a wave of deadly strikes saying Hamas militants had killed two soldiers and an Israeli safety official declared the transfer of aid into the territory was halted The military later noted it resumed enforcing the ceasefire and the official validated that aid deliveries would resume Monday The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he s not authorized to discuss the issue with the media A little over a week has passed since the start of the U S -proposed ceasefire aimed at ending two years of war U S President Donald Trump explained the ceasefire remained in place and we want to make sure it s going to be very peaceful He reported reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday that Hamas has been quite rambunctious and they ve been doing certain shooting He suggested that the violence might be the fault of rebels within the organization rather than its leadership It s going to be handled toughly but properly he commented Trump did not say whether he thought the Israeli strikes were justified saying it s under review Vice President JD Vance declared Sunday that he may visit Israel in the coming days We re trying to figure it out he notified reporters saying the administration wants to go and check on how things are going Regarding the ceasefire he declared that there s going to be fits and starts Medical bureaucrats reported at least Palestinians were killed across Gaza including children Israel s military revealed it struck dozens of Hamas targets after its troops came under fire A senior Egyptian official involved in the ceasefire negotiations explained round-the-clock contacts were underway to de-escalate the situation The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn t authorized to speak to reporters Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directed the military to take strong action against any ceasefire violations but didn t threaten to return to war Israel s military declared militants had fired at troops in areas of Rafah city that are Israeli-controlled according to agreed-upon ceasefire lines Hamas which continued to accuse Israel of multiple ceasefire violations mentioned communication with its remaining units in Rafah had been cut off for months and we are not responsible for any incidents occurring in those areas Strikes in Gaza Palestinians feared war would return to the famine-stricken territory where Israel cut off aid for over two months earlier this year after ending the previous ceasefire It will be a nightmare noted Mahmoud Hashim a father of five from Gaza City who appealed to U S President Donald Trump and other mediators to act Al-Awda hospital mentioned it received bodies from several Israeli strikes in the Nuseirat and Bureij camps in central Gaza An airstrike on a makeshift coffeehouse in Zawaida town in central Gaza killed at least six Palestinians according to Gaza s Robustness Ministry part of the Hamas-run ruling body A strike in Beit Lahiya in the north killed two men according to Shifa hospital Another strike hit a tent in the Muwasi area of Khan Younis in the south killing at least four people including a woman and two children according to Nasser Hospital Where is peace mentioned Khadijeh abu-Nofal in Khan Younis as hospital workers treated wounded children She accompanied a young woman hurt by shrapnel More bodies of hostages identified Israel identified the remains of two hostages published by Hamas overnight Ronen Engel a father from Kibbutz Nir Oz and Sonthaya Oakkharasri a Thai agricultural worker from Kibbutz Be eri Both were held to have been killed during the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct which sparked the war Engel s wife Karina and two of his three children were kidnapped and circulated in a November ceasefire Hamas in the past week has handed over the remains of hostages Its armed wing the Qassam Brigades noted it located the body of another hostage and would return it Sunday if circumstances in the field allowed It warned that any escalation by Israel would hamper search efforts Israel on Saturday pressed Hamas to fulfill its ceasefire role of returning the remains of all deceased hostages saying the Rafah confines spanning between Gaza and Egypt would stay closed until further notice It was the only traversing not controlled by Israel before the war Hamas says the war s devastation and Israeli military control of certain areas have slowed the handover Israel believes Hamas has access to more bodies than it has returned Israel has published bodies of Palestinians back to Gaza including on Sunday according to Gaza s Strength Ministry Israel has neither identified the bodies nor explained how they died The ministry posts photos of bodies on its website to help families attempting to locate loved ones Various are decomposed and blackened Certain are missing limbs and teeth Only bodies have been identified the Wellness Ministry commented Israel and Hamas earlier exchanged living hostages for more than Palestinian prisoners and detainees Ceasefire s second phase A Hamas delegation led by chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya arrived in Cairo to follow up the implementation of the ceasefire deal with mediators and other Palestinian groups The next stages are expected to focus on disarming Hamas Israeli withdrawal from additional areas it controls in Gaza and future governance of the devastated territory The U S plan proposes the establishment of an internationally backed authority Hamas spokesman Hazem Kassem revealed late Saturday that the group has begun discussions to solidify its positions He reiterated that Hamas won t be part of the ruling authority in a postwar Gaza and called for the prompt establishment of a body of Palestinian technocrats to run day-to-day affairs For now regime agencies in Gaza continue to perform their duties as the power vacuum is very dangerous he reported The Israel-Hamas war has killed more than Palestinians according to Gaza s Physical condition Ministry which doesn t distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count The ministry maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by U N agencies and independent experts Israel has disputed them without providing its own toll Thousands more people are missing according to the Red Cross Hamas-led militants killed around people mostly civilians and abducted people in the attack that sparked the war