ISRAEL’S MILITARY REINSTATES CEASEFIRE AFTER DEADLY OVERNIGHT STRIKES IN GAZA THAT KILL 104, INCLUDING 66 WOMEN AND CHILDREN Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip (AP)

— A Night of Horror as Bombardment Tests Fragile Truce

Israel’s military announced on Wednesday that the ceasefire in Gaza was back in effect following a night of intense airstrikes that devastated several parts of the Palestinian enclave. According to local health officials, at least 104 people were killed, among them 20 women and 46 children, making it the deadliest episode since the ceasefire began on October 10.

The overnight assault, which Israel described as a response to Hamas ceasefire violations, represents the most serious challenge yet to the fragile truce. The Israeli military said the bombardment was a retaliation for the shooting and killing of an Israeli soldier in Rafah, the southernmost city of Gaza.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hamas of breaking the terms of the agreement, particularly those relating to the handover of the remains of hostages.

In response, Hamas denied any involvement in the Rafah incident and condemned Israel’s actions as a blatant violation of the ceasefire deal. The group said the strikes prompted it to delay the return of another hostage’s body to Israel, further complicating efforts to maintain calm.

The attacks in the early hours of Wednesday leveled buildings, tents, and shelters housing displaced families across Gaza. Witnesses described scenes of chaos as ambulances raced through debris-laden streets, while trucks and makeshift carts ferried the dead and wounded to nearby hospitals.

In Deir al-Balah, bodies were seen being carried on stretchers and even on mattresses. One distraught man arrived at a hospital cradling the lifeless body of a young child.

“They burned children while they were asleep,” Haneen Mteir, whose sister and nephews were killed in one of the strikes, cried out at the morgue in Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.

According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, at least 104 people lost their lives, including 20 women and 46 children, while 253 others were injured, most of them women and children.

The latest escalation underscores the deep fragility of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and raises concerns that the situation could spiral once more into full-scale conflict.

As dawn broke over Gaza, residents sifted through the rubble of their homes and makeshift camps, mourning the night’s devastation even as Israel declared that the ceasefire had resumed.