The cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, which took hold on Oct. 10, remains in place as of Monday evening, local time, but it’s undoubtedly fragile following reports of further clashes in Gaza and accusations of violations from both sides.
Israel again accused Hamas of violating the terms of the cease-fire over the weekend, saying they targeted and killed two Israeli soldiers. Israel reported that its military personnel were targeted by Hamas in the Rafah area of southern Gaza, which is still under Israeli control. Responding to what it called Hamas’ “blatant violation” of the deal, Israel launched air strikes in the territory on Sunday and temporarily suspended humanitarian aid.
Hamas has maintained it was Israel that first breached the cease-fire.
There were further threats to the cease-fire’s stability on Monday morning, when the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said that “terrorists” had approached Israeli troops in the Shejaiya area of northern Gaza, crossing the agreed-upon withdrawal line within the territory.
“The troops fired toward the terrorists who crossed the yellow line in order to remove the threat to them,” said the IDF. “IDF troops are deployed in the area in accordance with the cease-fire agreement, and will continue to operate to remove any immediate threat.”
Although both sides remain engaged in the cease-fire for now, the foundations of the deal appear unstable and tensions remain high under the watchful eye of leaders from across the globe.
Here’s what to know about the current status of the Israel-Hamas cease fire:
Israel and Hamas accuse each other of violating the cease-fire
Two IDF soldiers were killed in clashes in the Rafah area of southern Gaza on Sunday, Israel’s Foreign Ministry confirmed. The IDF claimed that “terrorists” fired an anti-tank missile as well as gunfire towards Israeli troops, accusing Hamas of violating the terms of the cease-fire. The Israeli military stated it had carried out a series of strikes in response to said violations.
TIME has contacted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office for comment.
In response, the Hamas Government Media Office in Gaza accused Israel of committing 21 “violations” on Sunday, bringing the total alleged violations by Israel to 80 since the cease-fire began.
Hamas alleged 97 Palestinians have been killed and over 230 injured as a result of the violations. (In the absence of independent monitoring on the ground, the ministry is the primary source for casualty data relied upon by humanitarian groups, journalists, and international bodies. Its figures do not differentiate between civilians and combatants and cannot be independently verified by TIME.)
“We hold the occupation fully responsible for these violations and aggressions, and we call upon the United Nations and the guarantor parties to urgently intervene to compel the occupation to cease its continuous aggression,” Hamas said in a statement released on Sunday.
The clashes over the weekend came as the cease-fire was already on rocky ground.
Israel on Thursday accused Hamas of not complying with the cease-fire terms to return all of the hostages to Gaza. While all of the live hostages have returned home, Israel is awaiting the handover of the bodies of the deceased hostages. As of Monday morning, 12 bodies have been returned to Israel, with 16 still in Gaza.
Hamas has reported difficulty in locating the remaining bodies, with the group citing it needs special equipment to retrieve those buried under rubble.
Per the agreement, Israel is also returning the bodies of Palestinians taken from Gaza during the Israel-Hamas war. So far, Israel has released around 150 bodies back to Gaza, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which is facilitating the exchange of bodies from both sides.
Hamas said the returned Palestinian bodies showed signs of beatings and abuse—allegations the IDF has staunchly rejected.
“The IDF operates strictly in accordance with international law and the bodies returned are those of combatants,” the Israeli military said in a statement to TIME on Thursday.
What has Trump said about the fragile cease-fire?
President Donald Trump’s Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and son-in-law Jared Kushner are reported to have arrived in Israel on Monday to oversee the status of the cease-fire.
During a press conference in the White House on Monday, Trump echoed Israel and accused Hamas of committing cease-fire violations.
“We have a little situation relatively with Hamas. That will be taken care of very quickly, if they don’t straighten it out themselves, because they’re in violation of the agreement,” he said. This comes after he told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday that any violations would be “handled toughly, but properly.”
The President stated that Hamas has been acting “quite rambunctious.”
“I don’t believe it was the leadership, they had some rebellion in there amongst themselves and they killed some people. If they keep doing it, we’re going to go in and straighten it out,” said Trump, adding that U.S. troops would not be involved in a resumption of military action, should the cease-fire collapse.
What is set to happen next?
The cease-fire remains on shaky ground, as Israel pushes for the remainder of bodies belonging to the deceased hostages to be returned home.
“We know that Hamas can return them and we know that Hamas is aware of where they are located,” said spokesperson Bedrosian, who referred to Hamas’ claim that some bodies cannot be located as “propaganda.”
Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Katz, also issued a fresh warning to Hamas fighters in Gaza.
“Every Hamas terrorist found beyond the yellow line in the territory under Israel’s control must evacuate immediately,” said Katz on Monday. “Anyone who remains in the area will be a target for attack without any further warning, and Hamas leaders will bear responsibility for any incident.”
Meanwhile, aid trucks entered the territory on Monday via the Kerem Shalom crossing situated in southern Gaza along the border with Egypt and Israel. The United Nations is set to continue its 60-day plan to restore a more consistent flow of aid into Gaza.
U.N. Humanitarian Aid Chief Tom Fletcher, who visited Gaza over the weekend, announced on Monday that U.N. bulldozers and other equipment are being used to clear roads in the territory and improve the flow of aid. He referred to the process of readying Gaza for the next stage of the cease-fire as a “massive task.”
The post Where Does the Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire Stand? Amid Accusations of Violations, Here’s What to Know appeared first on TIME.
