18 March 2025 , 10:15
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At least 330 people have reportedly been killed after Israel bombarded Hamas terrorists in Gaza - putting the region back on the brink of all-out war.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered the airstrikes - the heaviest since the ceasefire began in January - due to a lack of progress in talks with the terrorist group.
Israel launched fresh airstrikes against Hamas in Gaza on Tuesday
Images circulating on social media appear to show the blitz on Gaza
Destruction at the Nuseirat Refugee Camp after an Israeli attackCredit: Getty
Injured Palestinians arrive at the Al Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, Gaza, after the strikesCredit: Getty
Hamas’ highest-ranking security official in Gaza, Mahmoud Abu Wafah has also been killed, reports claim.
Children and women are also among at least 330 killed in the attack, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Netanyahu’s defence minister said Israel had resumed fighting in the Strip while vowing to press ahead until all remaining Israeli hostages were released from Hamas’ grasp.
The surprise bombardment - dubbed "Strength and Sword" by the IDF - threatened to wreck the ceasefire in place since January and fully reignite the 17-month-old war.
Defence Minister Israel Katz warned: "If Hamas does not release all the kidnapped, the gates of hell will open in Gaza and Hamas’ murderers and rapists will meet the IDF with forces they have never known before.
"We will not stop fighting until all the kidnapped return home and all the war’s goals are achieved."
The terrorists still have around 59 of the 251 hostages they first kidnapped with brute force during the horrors of October 7.
Israel’s military said it had struck Hamas targets across Gaza - ending a weeks-long standoff over extending the ceasefire.
Donald Trump gave Israel the "green light" to resume the offensive against Hamas, ann Israeli official told the Wall Street Journal.
Devastating strikes were reported in several locations, including northern Gaza, Gaza City and the Deir al-Balah, Khan Younis and Rafah in central and southern Gaza Strip.
The IDF said the blitz would continue for as long as necessary and would extend beyond air strikes.
Evacuation orders warning Palestinians living on the edge of the strip have been issued by Israel’s military - including the towns of Beit Hanoun, Khuza’a, and the Abasan suburbs of Khan Younis.
Col. Avichay Adraee shared a map of “dangerous combat zones” that Gazans should flee from on X.
The attacks were far wider in scale than the regular series of drone strikes the Israeli military has said it has conducted against individuals or small groups of suspected militants.
Netanyahu had issued Hamas a stark warning of "consequences you can’t imagine" if the remaining hostages weren’t freed,
He said earlier this month: "We will not stop until we achieve all our victory objectives: the return of all our hostages, the destruction of Hamas’s military and governing power, and ensuring Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel."
And US President Trump delivered Hamas a chilling "last warning" to return all the hostages immediately or face death and destruction.
It follows weeks of failed efforts to agree an extension to the truce agreed on January 19.
Netanyahu’s office accused Hamas of "repeated refusal to release our hostages" and rejecting proposals from Trump’s Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff.
"Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength," it said in a statement.
In Washington, a White House spokesperson said Israel had consulted the US administration before it carried out the strikes.
The military said strikes targeted mid-level Hamas commanders and leadership officials as well as infrastructure belonging to the terror group.
Freed British-Israeli hostage Emily Damari said she is "crushed and disappointed" by the renewed fighting.
It come just days after Netanyahu threatened the Hamas terrorists with "consequences you can’t imagine" if the Israeli hostages weren’t freed.
In 2025, 33 Israeli captives were returned in the first phase of the ceasefire - including eight bodies.
Three of the bodies returned to Israel included mum Shiri Bibas and her two young sons Kfir and Ariel.
Last month saw the family finally laid to rest as they held a touching funeral procession through Israel.
Their heartbroken dad, who was held hostage by Hamas, led thousands of grief-stricken Israelis who lined the streets just days after their bodies were handed over by their captors.
The war started between Israel and Hamas after the terror group killed more than 1,200 people in a brutal surprise attack.
It triggered an Israeli military offensive that has killed more than 48,520 people, according to figures from the Hamas-run health ministry used by the UN.
Head of Investigations