Israel and Hamas cross complaints of violation of truce after incident in northern Gaza

The Israeli Army and the Islamist group Hamas accused each other of having violated the truce in force in the Gaza Strip after an incident in the north of the enclave in which several Israeli soldiers were injured.

“During the last hour, three explosive devices were detonated alongside Israeli Defense Forces troops in two different locations in the northern Gaza Strip, violating the framework of the operational pause. At one of the locations, the terrorists also opened fire on the troops, who responded with fire. Several soldiers were slightly injured in the incidents”, reported the Israeli military spokesperson.

For its part, the Al Qasam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamasthey denounced “a clear violation of the truce” by Israel during an episode of “friction on the ground“, although they clarified that they are “committed to the truce as long as the enemy maintains its commitment”.

“We call on the mediators to pressure the occupation (Israel) to adhere to all the terms of the truce, both on the ground and in the air“said the spokesman for the Brigades, Abu Obeida, who acknowledged, however, that the group’s combatants “They responded to the violation today” of the agreement by Israeli troops.

These episodes come on the fifth day of a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, after more than a month and a half of fighting.

The agreement, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States and which includes an exchange of hostages for prisoners and the entry of humanitarian aid to Loopwent into effect Friday morning and was scheduled to last four days.

Yesterday, shortly before it expired, Qatar announced a two-day extension, during which the three elements of the pact are maintained.

This Tuesday, the release of captive hostages in Gaza and the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails is scheduled to continue, something that has already taken place during the last four days, in which 69 Israeli and foreign hostages and 150 Palestinian prisoners were released.

Israel declared war on Hamas on October 7 following an attack by the Islamist group, which included the launching of more than 4,000 rockets and the infiltration of some 3,000 militants, who killed some 1,200 people and kidnapped more than 240 in Israeli communities near Hamas. the Gaza Strip.

Israel’s air, naval and ground forces have since counterattacked in the Palestinian enclave, where more than 15,000 people have already died, according to Palestinian authorities, most of them children and women, and it is estimated that more than 7,000 people are missing under the rubble. in addition to more than 36,000 injured.