Netanyahu orders Israeli army to carry out ‘powerful’ strikes in Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has ordered the army to immediately carry out “powerful strikes” in Gaza.

Hamas responded by saying it would delay handing over the body of a hostage, putting new pressure on the tenuous US-brokered ceasefire.

Tank fire and explosions were seen and heard in various parts of Gaza, and at least two Palestinians were killed, according to health officials in the territory.

“That’s doesn’t mean there aren’t going to be little skirmishes here and there,” Mr Vance told reporters on Capitol Hill.

– Fragile ceasefire holds so far despite tests

The ceasefire that began on October 10 has largely held despite at least two previous flare-ups in violence.

On October 19, Israel said two Israeli soldiers were killed by Hamas fire.

Israel responded with a series of strikes that killed over 40 Palestinians, according to local health officials.

And over the weekend, Israel carried out an airstrike against what it said were Islamic Jihad militants planning an attack, wounding several people.

There are still 13 bodies of hostages in Gaza.

Hamas said on Tuesday it had recovered the body of a hostage, but after Israel announced the plans to strike Gaza, Hamas said in a statement it would delay the handover.

An Associated Press videographer in Khan Younis witnessed on Tuesday what appeared to be a white body bag being carried out from a tunnel by several men, including some masked militants, and then transported into an ambulance.

It was not immediately clear what was in the bag.

The slow return of hostages’ bodies is posing a challenge to implementing the next stages of the ceasefire, which will address even knottier issues, such as the disarmament of Hamas, the deployment of an international security force in Gaza and deciding who will govern the territory.

Hamas has said it is struggling to locate the bodies amid the vast destruction in Gaza, while Israel has accused the militant group of purposely delaying their return.

Over the weekend, Egypt deployed a team of experts and heavy equipment to help search for the bodies of the remaining hostages.

That work continued on Tuesday in Khan Younis and Nuseirat.

An Arab official involved in negotiating the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas said talks were under way with both sides to try to prevent the truce from collapsing.

“Both sides violated the agreement, but there was no significant breach,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The official said violations included delays in handing over bodies, the failure to open the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, delays evacuating patients out of Gaza, the limited scale-up of aid delivery, and “minor skirmishes” on the line that separates Israeli troops from the rest of Gaza.