by Lila Li
On the morning of March 18, Israel launched a surprise siege on the Gaza Strip, killing over four hundred people and putting a unilateral end to the ceasefire not even two months after it began.
Over the past two months, even before declaring it was resuming military operations in Gaza, Israel had committed a plethora of ceasefire violations, failing or refusing to fulfill obligations agreed upon in the deal.For example, the government refused to withdraw forces from the Philadelphi Corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border, delayed pre-scheduled releases of Palestinian prisoners in protest of Hamas’ own conduct of hostage releases, and towards the end of the first phase, blocked the flow of humanitarian aid and electricity into the enclave. At the same time, though military operations were largely halted, the Israeli army continued to attack Palestinians through air strikes and shootings, killing over 150 and injuring dozens more between January 19 and March 18.
Yet only the March 18 attacks represent a true end to the ceasefire, with Israel declaring its plans for “increasing military force” and Hamas in turn telling Reuters that Israel is unilaterally ending—not simply violating—the ceasefire agreement. The March 18 siege was preplanned, with the Trump administration having been briefed on Israel’s intentions; as Israel sent waves of airstrikes into Gaza, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed in a Fox News interview that “the Trump administration and the White House were consulted by the Israelis on their attacks in Gaza tonight.
“As President Trump has made it clear – Hamas, the Houthis, Iran, all those who seek to terrorize not just Israel, but also the United States of America, will see a price to pay. All hell will break loose,” Leavitt added, mirroring the president’s earlier public warning that “hell [would] break out” if Hamas did not release all hostages. Hamas spokesperson Abdul Latif al-Qanou argued that Israel’s “coordination with the U.S. administration prior to the attacks confirms the U.S. partnership in the genocide perpetrated against our people and its role in covering up Israeli war crimes” (CBS).
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz claimed the attacks were a response to Hamas’ refusal to release more hostages, reflecting a disagreement that had grown in significance over the past few weeks. Despite demands and pressure from Israel and the U.S. for an extension of the first phase and the immediate return of all remaining hostages, Hamas held steadfast to its commitment to the existing ceasefire deal, which would have pivoted into talks on and the execution of a second phase featuring the release of remaining hostages, a full Israeli withdrawal, and a lasting ceasefire agreement, six weeks after the implementation of the first phase. In response, Israel and the U.S. have blamed the resumption of war on Hamas’ supposed failure to release all the hostages. Echoing U.S. rhetoric, Katz declared in a statement released by his office that “if Hamas does not release all the kidnapped, the gates of hell will open in Gaza and Hamas’ murderers and rapists will meet the IDF with forces they have never known before.”
The Israeli government’s decision to unilaterally end the ceasefire has drawn wide condemnation and holds dire consequences for not only the people of Gaza but for the Israeli hostages remaining in Hamas captivity. Izzat al-Risheq, a member of Hamas’ political bureau, has framed the decision as a sacrifice on the part of the Israeli government, declaring “Netanyahu’s decision to return to war… a decision to sacrifice the prisoners of the occupation and a death sentence against them.” As protests against the Israeli government sweep towards Jerusalem, Israel’s Hostages and Missing Families Forum has further condemned the decision as a “complete deception,” claiming that “the families’ greatest fear has come true—the Israeli government has chosen to give up on the abductees.” Israelis released from captivity in the first phase, including hostage Emily Damari and soldier Liri Albag, have expressed their dismay with the resumption of war, asking: “What about those [hostages] who were left behind? Once again they are forgotten.”
Various other powers have expressed their concern with the situation, including China, Russia, Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Turkey, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Australia, the United Nations, and the DC-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). In particular, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Beijing was “highly concerned” about the situation; the Kremlin warned of an impending “spiral of escalation” and expressed special concern about “the reports of major casualties among the civilian population”; Egypt, which has been acting as a mediator between Israel and Hamas, labeled the strikes a “flagrant violation” of the ceasefire. Volker Turk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the resurgence of war would “add tragedy onto tragedy [and] only heap further misery upon a Palestinian population already suffering catastrophic conditions.” Yemen’s Houthi group has further threatened to “escalate confrontation steps” in support of Palestinians in Gaza.
This attack has also undone progress made during the two months the ceasefire was technically in effect; Haaretz reported that neutral Egyptian-American contractors intended to assume supervisory duties from Israeli forces were withdrawing from their stations at the Netzarim Corridor, a stretch of territory bisecting northern and southern Gaza that Israel turned into an impassable boundary during the fifteen-month war.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is likely using the resumption of war as a political tool; prosecutors have canceled Netanyahu’s testimony in his domestic corruption case in light of the nation’s reentry of conflict. To retain his power in the Knesset, Netanyahu must continue to acquiesce with the demands of nationalist politicians—in this case, this means sustaining the forever war.
At three a.m., writer and influencer Omar Hamad documented from Beit Hanoun: “I want to end with a message to everyone watching us being killed live on air: remember that we have dreams just like you, and we love life just as you do. But it seems our lives are meant only for death.”
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Lila Li is an intern at Massachusetts Peace Action passionate about international human rights law