“Peace in the Middle East” may be almost over.
Even Donald Trump recognized the fragility of the ceasefire arrangement between Israel and Palestine Monday, mentioning during a meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese that his administration was currently grappling with a “little situation” in the region.
“We have a little situation, relatively, with Hamas, and that will be taken care of very quickly if they don’t straighten it out themselves,” Trump told reporters Monday. “Because they’re in violation of their agreement.”
Israel violated the ceasefire deal over the weekend when it launched a wave of airstrikes at the Gaza Strip, killing dozens of people, including children. The bodies of 57 Palestinians had been brought to hospitals across the region over the last 24 hours, reported Al Jazeera.
Israel claimed that its attack was precipitated by Hamas’s own violation of the peace deal. The Israeli military announced, early Sunday Eastern time, that “terrorists” in the Rafah area had fired guns and an anti-tank missile at IDF forces.
Hamas responded that it was not responsible for the attacks and that it was committed to the terms of the peace deal, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nonetheless directed that “strong action” be taken against “terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip.”
Netanyahu met with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner Monday to discuss the situation. Vice President JD Vance, who may travel to Israel later this week, suggested Sunday that the ceasefire arrangement had not been seriously tested.
“There’s going to be fits and starts,” Vance told reporters Sunday.
By Monday around noon Eastern time, the Israeli military had launched an artillery attack in Deir El Balah, according to Al Jazeera.
Last month, a United Nations commission formally determined that Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip is a genocide.
Over nearly 24 months of fighting, Israel has cut off access to water, electricity, medical services, and food in the region, all under the banner of rooting out Hamas soldiers, forcing millions of people into mass suffering to satisfy their war. For decades, Israel has trimmed away and confiscated Palestinian land, claiming it for its own illegal settlements—a feat that wouldn’t have been possible without the financial support of the United States.
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