Israel has violated the Gaza ceasefire 266 times and has killed 132 Palestinians since the truce went into effect on January 19, Al Jazeera reported on Tuesday, citing Palestinian security sources.
Out of the 132 people who were killed, 26 succumbed to wounds received during Israeli attacks. Over 900 Palestinians have also been injured by Israeli gunfire and airstrikes.
In many cases, the Israeli military acknowledged its forces fired on Palestinians simply because they were approaching IDF troops. Due to the Israeli military’s open-fire policy, an unarmed Israeli civilian contractor was also killed.
The Palestinian security sources said other ceasefire violations have included strikes on vehicles headed to north Gaza, attacks on bulldozers working to clear the rubble, and gunfire on civilians attempting to return to their homes.
Al Jazeera also reported that Israeli gunfire killed a child in Rafah, southern Gaza, on Tuesday, and another was wounded by an Israeli attack in Gaza City. It’s unclear if the latest violence was included in the total casualty count.
Despite the Israeli ceasefire violations, Hamas is still going through with hostage releases and announced Tuesday that it would be releasing six living and four dead Israeli hostages this week.
Hamas said that in exchange, Israel agreed to allow mobile homes and construction vehicles into Gaza. The fact that Israel had been blocking such equipment is also a ceasefire violation since it made a commitment to allow the aid to enter Gaza under the initial ceasefire and hostage deal.
