Gaza’s civil defence agency said 21 people were killed and dozens more wounded in a series of Israeli air strikes on Saturday, as Israel and Hamas again traded accusations of violating the fragile ceasefire.

Saturday marked one of the deadliest days since the US-brokered truce came into effect on 10 October, following two years of war.

Israel Says “Armed Terrorist” Breached Line

The Israeli military said an “armed terrorist” crossed the so-called Yellow Line inside the Gaza Strip — a zone behind which Israeli forces had withdrawn — and opened fire on Israeli soldiers.

In response to what it described as an attack in southern Gaza on a route used for humanitarian aid deliveries, the military said it “began striking terror targets in the Gaza Strip.”

Civil Defence: “Clear Violation of the Ceasefire”

Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for the civil defence agency operating under Hamas authorities, told AFP there were “21 martyrs this evening in five separate Israeli air strikes, in a clear violation of the ceasefire in Gaza”.

According to Bassal, seven people were killed and more than 16 injured when a house in Nuseirat, central Gaza, was hit. Four others were killed in an air strike on a residential apartment in the Al-Nasr district, west of Gaza City.

Vehicle Hit in Western Gaza City

The first reported strike targeted a vehicle in the Al-Rimal neighbourhood of western Gaza City, killing five people and injuring several more. An AFP photographer at the scene saw passers-by approach the burnt-out wreckage, with children appearing to salvage food from inside the car.

AFP has sought comment from the Israeli military regarding the strikes.

Israel Accuses Hamas of Violating Truce

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Hamas was responsible for breaking the agreement.

“Today, Hamas violated the ceasefire again, sending a terrorist into Israel-held territory to attack IDF soldiers. In response, Israel eliminated five senior Hamas terrorists,” the statement said on X.

It added: “Israel has fully honoured the ceasefire, Hamas has not. Throughout the ceasefire, dozens of Hamas terrorists have crossed the Israeli lines to attack our troops. We again call on the mediators to insist that Hamas fulfil its side of the ceasefire.”

Hamas Calls on Mediators to Act

Hamas, in turn, accused Israel of attempting to collapse the truce.

The group said the “escalation” of Israeli actions was an attempt “to undermine the ceasefire”. It added: “We affirm our rejection of all attempts by Netanyahu’s government to impose a de facto reality that contradicts what was agreed upon, and we call on the mediators to intervene urgently and exert pressure to stop these violations immediately.”

Rising Toll Despite Ceasefire

Gaza had already suffered one of its deadliest days since the truce on Wednesday, when officials reported 27 fatalities.

According to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, 312 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the ceasefire took hold.

The war began after Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attack on Israel, which killed 1,221 people. Israel’s subsequent assault on Gaza has killed at least 69,733 people, according to figures from Gaza’s health ministry that the UN deems reliable.