The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza appears at risk after a little over a week, after each side accused the other of breaches.
An agreement came into effect on October 9, after just over two years of full-scale war which has devastated the Palestinian territory on the Mediterranean coast.
It was the initial phase in the implementation of a 20-point plan written up by US President Donald Trump.
But just 10 days later, the uneasy peace appears fragile.
The Israeli army said this afternoon there had been ‘an anti-tank missile and gunfire’ directed at troops who were ‘operating to dismantle terrorist infrastructure’ in the Rafah area of Gaza.
In a tweet, the IDF added: ‘In response, the IDF has begun striking in the area to eliminate the threat and dismantle tunnel shafts and military structures used for terrorist activity.
‘These terrorist actions constitute a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement, and the IDF will respond firmly.’
A statement from the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had called for his defence minister and security chiefs to ‘act forcefully against terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip’.
Hamas responded by saying it was ‘unaware of any events or clashes taking place in the Rafah area’, but added contact with any of its groups that may remain in the area has been ‘cut off’ since March this year.
It added: ‘We affirm our full commitment to implementing everything that was agreed upon, foremost among which is the ceasefire in all areas of the Gaza Strip.’
The group had also previously accused Israel of breaching the ceasefire after it came into effect.
In a Telegram post yesterday, an official Hamas account claimed the IDF had violated the agreement 47 times, killing 38 people and wounding 143.
It said: ‘These violations have been monitored in all governorates of the Gaza Strip without exception, confirming that the occupation forces have not committed to the cessation of aggression and are continuing their policy of killing and terrorising our Palestinian people.’
The Ministry of Health in Gaza, which is operated by Hamas, said in a statement today that eight people had been killed by Israeli actions in the past 24 hours.
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