Israel strikes Gaza after it says Hamas attacked across ceasefire line

TEL AVIV Israel AP Israel on Sunday struck targets in the southern Gaza Strip after it disclosed its troops came under fire from Hamas militants in the first major test of a U S -brokered ceasefire meant to halt more than two years of war Members of the Palestinian group used an RPG and Israel responded with airstrikes and artillery the military explained Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held consultations with Israel s safeguard heads and directed the military to take strong action against any ceasefire violations but did not threaten to return to war Hamas stated that it was not connected to any clashes in Rafah in southern Gaza The strikes came as Israel identified the remains of two hostages circulated by Hamas overnight and the Palestinian group noted talks to launch the second phase of ceasefire negotiations have begun Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu s office announced the bodies belonged to Ronen Engel a father of three from Kibbutz Nir Oz and Sonthaya Oakkharasri a Thai agricultural worker killed at Kibbutz Be eri Both were concluded to have been killed during the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct and their bodies were taken to Gaza Engel s wife Karina and two of his three children were kidnapped and disclosed in a ceasefire in November Meanwhile Israel threatened to keep the Rafah edge overcoming between Gaza and Egypt closed until further notice The declaration by Netanyahu s office explained reopening Rafah would depend on how Hamas fulfills its ceasefire role of returning the remains of all deceased hostages In the past week Hamas has handed over the remains of bodies of which have been identified as hostages Israel declared one of the bodies disclosed did not belong to a hostage Israel has disclosed bodies of Palestinians back to Gaza including on Sunday according to the Gaza Physical condition Ministry part of the Hamas-run regime Israel has neither identified the bodies nor commented how they died The ministry has posted photos of dozens of bodies on its website to help families and relatives attempting to locate their loved ones but the bodies were decomposed blackened and selected were missing limbs and teeth Only bodies have been identified the Healthcare Ministry mentioned After Israel and Hamas exchanged living hostages for more than Palestinian prisoners and detainees the handover of the remains of deceased hostages and prisoners remains a major issue in the first stage of the ceasefire proposed by U S President Donald Trump A major scale-up of aid including the opening of the Rafah dividing line transiting for humanitarian aid and people entering or leaving Gaza is the other central issue The next stages of the ceasefire will focus on disarming Hamas Israeli withdrawal from additional areas it controls in Gaza and future governance of the devastated territory Second phase The Israeli military announced on Sunday that militants shot at troops in the southern Gaza city of Rafah in the Israeli-controlled areas according to the agreed-upon ceasefire lines No injuries were stated A senior Hamas official denied that Hamas was involved Hamas and Israel have each accused each other of violating the fragile ceasefire Meanwhile Hamas says that talks with mediators to start the second phase of the ceasefire have begun Hazem Kassem a Hamas spokesman stated in a announcement late Saturday that the second phase of negotiations requires national consensus He also declared Hamas has begun discussions to solidify its positions without providing further details According to Trump s plan the negotiations will include disarming Hamas and the establishment of an internationally backed authority to run the embattled Gaza Strip Kassem reiterated that the group won t be part of the ruling authority in a postwar Gaza Hamas-run cabinet bodies in the Gaza Strip are running day-to-day affairs to avoid a power void he revealed Regime agencies in Gaza continue to perform their duties as the vacuum is very dangerous and this will continue until an administrative committee is formed and agreed upon by all Palestinian factions he mentioned Kassem called for a Society Help Committee a body of Palestinian technocrats to run the day-to-day affairs to be established promptly Rafah frontier transiting Israel didn t open the Rafah territory line bridging on Sunday in an attempt to pressure Hamas to return more hostages bodies Hamas says it requirements special equipment to locate the bodies of additional hostages but Israel believes Hamas has access to more bodies than it has returned The Rafah moving across was the only one not controlled by Israel before the war It has been closed since May when Israel took control of the Gaza side A fully reopened traversing would make it easier for Palestinians to seek medicinal healing expedition or visit family in Egypt home to tens of thousands of Palestinians On Sunday the Palestinian Authority s Interior Ministry in Ramallah declared procedures for Palestinians wishing to leave or enter Gaza through the Rafah traveling For those who want to leave Gaza Palestinian Embassy staff from Cairo will be at the traveling to issue temporary tour documents that allow entry into Egypt Palestinians who wish to enter the Gaza Strip will need to apply at the embassy in Cairo for relevant entry documents The Israel-Hamas war has killed more than Palestinians according to the Healthcare Ministry which is part of the Hamas-run governing body in the territory Its figures are seen as a reliable estimate of wartime deaths by U N agencies and plenty of independent experts Israel has disputed them without providing its own toll Thousands more people are missing according to the Red Cross Hamas-led militants killed around people mostly civilians and abducted people in the attack that sparked the war Hamas rejects US claim The group rejected on Sunday a claim by the U S State Department that noted it had credible reports of an imminent planned attack by Hamas against residents of Gaza This planned attack against Palestinian civilians would constitute a direct and grave violation of the ceasefire agreement and undermine the vital progress achieved through mediation efforts the U S State Department disclosed in a message Saturday Hamas called the claim false charges and accused Israel of supporting armed groups operating in Israeli-controlled areas Hamas urged the U S administration to pressure Israel to stop supporting the gangs and providing them a safe haven Hamas-led fighters clashed with at least two armed groups in eastern Gaza City that the group alleges are involved in looting aid and collaborating with Israel They executed a handful of persons in society in widely condemned street killings The Interior Ministry part of the Hamas-run authorities says its forces were working to restore law and order across areas Israel s military withdrew from following the ceasefire