Israel Warns It Will Resume Gaza Offensive if Hamas Fails to Honor US-Backed Truce

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz on Wednesday warned that the Israeli military will resume fighting in Gaza if Hamas fails to uphold the terms of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement that brought a halt to months of devastating conflict. The warning came shortly after Hamas handed over the remains of two deceased hostages to Israel, stating that further recovery efforts required specialized equipment.

In a statement released by Katz’s office, the minister declared, “If Hamas refuses to comply with the agreement, Israel, in coordination with the United States, will resume fighting and act to achieve a total defeat of Hamas, to change the reality in Gaza, and achieve all the objectives of the war.”

The ceasefire, mediated under U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace initiative, led to the exchange of 20 surviving Israeli hostages for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails. However, Hamas’s recent statement that it has returned all the remains it could access has cast uncertainty over the truce’s continuation.

In a message posted on its official channels, Hamas’s military wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, stated that it had fulfilled its obligations under the deal by releasing all living captives and the remains of those it could reach.
“The Resistance has fulfilled its commitment to the agreement by handing over all living Israeli prisoners in its custody, as well as the corpses it could access,” the group said. “As for the remaining corpses, it requires extensive efforts and special equipment for their retrieval and extraction. We are exerting great effort in order to close this file.”

Senior U.S. advisors confirmed that Hamas had conveyed assurances of continued cooperation, telling reporters, “We continue to hear from them that they intend to honor the deal. They want to see the deal completed in that regard.”

Despite these assurances, political pressure continues to mount on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to ensure the full return of hostages’ remains, with far-right officials calling for harsh measures. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir threatened to suspend all humanitarian aid to Gaza if Hamas fails to return the bodies of Israeli soldiers still held there. Adding to the uncertainty, Israel’s military liaison agency, COGAT, announced Thursday that the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt—the territory’s only border point not controlled by Israel—will remain closed for now.

“The date for the opening of the Rafah Crossing for the movement of people only will be announced at a later stage, once the Israeli side, together with the Egyptian side, completes the necessary preparations,” COGAT said. “It should be emphasized that humanitarian aid will not pass through the Rafah Crossing. This was never agreed upon at any stage.”

COGAT reiterated that humanitarian assistance “continues to enter Gaza” through other designated crossings. The decision followed earlier reports by Israel’s public broadcaster KAN, which had suggested that Rafah would reopen imminently—a report later denied by Israeli officials.

On Thursday, the Israeli army confirmed that the bodies returned by Hamas were those of Inbar Hayman and Sergeant Major Mohammad al-Atrash.

Following forensic identification by the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, military representatives informed their families that the remains had been returned for burial.

Hayman, a 27-year-old graffiti artist from Haifa known by the pseudonym “Pink,” was killed during the October 7 Nova music festival attack, while al-Atrash, a 39-year-old Bedouin soldier, was slain in combat that same day.

Defence Minister Katz extended condolences to the families “on behalf of the entire Defense establishment,” noting that “Inbar was abducted from the Nova festival and assassinated by Hamas murderers on October 7, and Mohammad fell in battle after defending his division’s soldiers with supreme heroism.”

Prime Minister Netanyahu’s office issued a statement expressing “deep sorrow” and reaffirming Israel’s commitment to the deal’s implementation. “The Hamas terrorist organization is required to uphold its commitments to the mediators and return the hostages as part of the agreement. We will not compromise on this,” it said.

Meanwhile, Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry announced that Israel had transferred 45 additional Palestinian bodies to Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza, bringing the total number of Palestinian remains returned to 90. Under the Trump peace framework, Israel is to return 15 Palestinian bodies for every deceased Israeli hostage.

As implementation continues, UN Humanitarian Chief Tom Fletcher urged Israel to open all Gaza crossings for humanitarian aid. “It should happen now. We want it to happen immediately as part of this agreement,” Fletcher told AFP from Cairo, ahead of his planned visit to the Gaza border.

“The test is that we have children fed, that we have anaesthetics in hospitals, that people have tents over their heads,” he said, emphasizing that the truce’s credibility depends on tangible humanitarian outcomes.

Gaza’s Civil Defense Agency, which operates under Hamas, claimed that Israeli fire on Wednesday killed three Palestinians, including two individuals attempting to reach their homes in Gaza City’s Shujaiya neighborhood.

The Israeli military confirmed an incident in which “several suspects were identified crossing the yellow line and approaching troops in the northern Gaza Strip,” calling it a violation of the agreement. “Troops removed the threat by striking the suspects,” the army said.

The Gaza war, ignited by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 assault on Israel, has led to catastrophic humanitarian consequences, leaving the enclave heavily reliant on international aid that has often been delayed or restricted.

The United Nations declared a famine in Gaza in late August, though Israel rejected the assessment, insisting that it continues to allow humanitarian deliveries under the Trump plan’s terms.

Another critical challenge remains Hamas’s disarmament, a requirement enshrined in the 20-point U.S. peace plan. While Hamas continues to assert control over Gaza’s devastated urban areas, both Israel and the United States have maintained that the group cannot play any role in Gaza’s future governance.

As tensions resurface over compliance and aid, Israel’s latest warning marks a pivotal test for the fragile ceasefire. Whether the current truce can withstand the mounting political and humanitarian strains will determine whether Gaza moves toward peace—or back into another devastating round of war.