30 civilians killed after Netanyahu orders ‘powerful’ attack on Gaza
Trump says ‘nothing’ will jeopardize Gaza ceasefire, Israel ‘should hit back’ if attacked
Gaza City: In less than three weeks after the Gaza ceasefire came into effect, Israel launched air strikes targeting several locations across Gaza, after both Israel and Hamas accused each other of violating the fragile truce. According to Gaza's civil defense service, Israeli military killed at least 30 civilians on Tuesday during the strikes.
The Israeli military claimed that the strikes were carried out in retaliation for an alleged Hamas attack on its troops near Rafah, calling it a violation of the ceasefire. In response, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had ordered “powerful strikes," while Defence Minister Israel Katz described the alleged Hamas assault as “a crossing of a bright red line.”
Hamas, however, denied any involvement, stating that its fighters had “no connection to the shooting incident in Rafah.”
In Washington, US President Donald Trump said that “nothing” would jeopardize the ceasefire, but defended Israel’s right to retaliate. “They killed an Israeli soldier. So the Israelis hit back. And they should hit back,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One. Vice President JD Vance, meanwhile, maintained that the truce remained intact despite “small skirmishes.”
Gaza’s civil defence agency reported at least three major air strikes on Tuesday, including one near Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical facility in Gaza, and another that struck a vehicle, killing five people inside.
Tensions also grew over the hostage handover process, a key element of the ceasefire deal. Under the agreement, Hamas was to return 28 sets of remains and 20 living captives. The group was expected to transfer the body of another Israeli hostage on Tuesday, but delayed the handover, citing Israeli “escalation” as a hindrance to recovery operations.
In a statement, Hamas’s armed wing said it had located the bodies of two hostages but did not indicate when they would be returned. Israeli officials later accused Hamas of deception after forensic tests revealed that the remains handed over earlier belonged to a hostage already repatriated two years ago.
“Hamas dug a hole, placed partial remains inside, covered it with dirt, and handed it over to the Red Cross,” said Israeli government spokeswoman Shosh Bedrosian.
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem dismissed the allegation, saying the group was still searching for bodies amid widespread devastation caused by Israel’s two-year offensive. “The movement is determined to hand over the bodies of the Israeli captives as soon as possible once they are located,” he said.
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Cong takes dig at govt after Trump's 'India to buy Venezuelan oil' remark'
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Sunday took a swipe at the Modi government over US President Donald Trump's remarks that India is going to buy oil from Venezuela instead of Iran, saying the American leader continues to give “information on what our own government has done or will be doing”.
The opposition party's dig came after Trump, responding to a question, told reporters while travelling on Air Force One, "China is welcome to come in and we'll make a great deal on oil. We welcome China."
"We've already made a deal. India is coming in, and they're going to be buying Venezuelan oil as opposed to buying it from Iran. So, we've already made that deal, the concept of the deal," Trump said.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh shared the audio of Trump's remarks on X.
"He (Trump) told us Op Sindoor had been halted. He told us India had stopped buying Russian oil. And now this," the Congress leader said.
"President Trump continues to give us information on what our own government has done or will be doing," Ramesh said on X.
