Gaza Strikes Kill 18 as Board of Peace Envoy Warns of Interference with Ceasefire Plan
Israeli strikes across Gaza killed at least 18 Palestinians on Monday, interfering with Board of Peace efforts to implement a US-backed ceasefire and disarmament plan, according to officials and medics. [3] Gaza strikes hit Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis, killing civilians including a couple and their 9-year-old son, and destroying medical supplies. [3]
Casualties and Targets from Latest Strikes
Gaza strikes continued for a second straight day on Monday, with Israeli warplanes hitting Gaza City in the north, the central city of Deir al-Balah and the southern area of Khan Younis. [3] Palestinian health officials reported that the strikes caused the biggest daily death toll in weeks. [3] Strikes on Deir al-Balah killed at least four people, while a separate attack wounded five people and set some tents ablaze in Mawasi, near Khan Younis. [3] A couple and their 9-year-old son were killed in a strike on a house in Mawasi. [3] Another couple was killed with their child in a strike on an apartment in Gaza City, where two more people died in a strike on a tent near the office of the Egyptian representative mission. [3] Later on Sunday, another two people were killed in the city's eastern Zeitoun neighbourhood. [3] One person was killed near Jabalia in northern Gaza. [3] In a subsequent attack on Gaza City, medics said an Israeli airstrike on a car killed at least three Palestinians near Saraya Square. [3] The Israeli military said a strike on an apartment in Deir al-Balah was targeting two commanders of Hamas' elite "Nukhba" force. [3] The Gaza City and Jabalia strikes also targeted "military operatives," but the military was still reviewing the situation. [3] The IDF stated some strikes targeted Hamas commanders from the Nukhba force and other military operatives. [3]
Board of Peace Envoy Criticizes Interference with Peace Plan
Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace's lead envoy, said the strikes undermine de-escalation work and the implementation of President Trump's plan for disarming Palestinian factions and establishing a civilian government. [2] Mladenov implied that IDF strikes in the Gaza Strip are interfering with peace efforts. [2] "Two days of strikes across Gaza have killed civilians and destroyed medical supplies that people depend on," Mladenov said in an X/Twitter post. [2] Mladenov noted that the BoP's current efforts are concentrated on disarming "Palestinian factions" in Gaza and implementing a civilian government. [2] He added that both Israel and the "Palestinian factions" have obligations under the deal that they must adhere to. [2] "My team and I are working around the clock with the parties, the mediators and regional partners to de-escalate and create the space for the full implementation of the [US] President's plan," he said. [2] "Achieving a lasting peace is hard but achievable if everyone makes their best efforts." [2] Mladenov's comments come following an IDF announcement earlier on Sunday that it had killed two Hamas commanders in Gaza over the weekend. [2] Also on Sunday, the IDF said it killed three Gaza terrorists from three separate terror groups over the past week. [2]
Israeli Government Position on Disarmament Deal
Israeli officials, including Energy Minister Eli Cohen and a Netanyahu spokesperson, expressed skepticism about the disarmament deal, stating Hamas must fully disarm before attacks halt and that Israel has concerns with the plan. [3] On Sunday, Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen said the government would give Hamas the opportunity to disarm but that he was "very sceptical" that would happen. [3] Cohen told Israel's Army Radio there had been no deal to halt attacks on Gaza and that he saw a need for Israel, which already controls 70% of the enclave, to take full control of it if Hamas did not disarm. [3] "In the deal we signed with the United States, our stance is that Hamas must be dismantled. This is the first thing that must happen," he added. [3] Later on Sunday, a spokesperson for Netanyahu's office told Reuters that Israel expressed concerns to the US on the disarmament plan. [3] "The most important concern for Israel is that nothing can happen before Hamas completely and truly disarms ...," Doron Spielman, a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister's office, said. [3] White House and BoP officials told The Jerusalem Post on Friday that they are "not asking Israel to do anything other than agree to the 20-point plan that they agreed to initially." [2] "We’re very confident they will adhere to it," the officials added. [2] "If they don’t, obviously, very, very disappointed.” [2]
Hamas and Palestinian Reactions
Hamas said it showed flexibility but accused Israel of undermining peace efforts by intensifying strikes; it requires Israel to stop attacks and withdraw troops before handing over weapons. [3] Hamas has said Israel must stop its attacks in Gaza and pull its troops back, in accordance with other key terms of the ceasefire deal, before it will agree to hand over weapons to a new Palestinian body named to run Gaza. [3] A senior Hamas official said on Sunday the group had demonstrated "considerable flexibility," but accused Israel of wanting to impose a de facto situation on the ground by intensifying its strikes. [3] "This escalation, coinciding with progress on the political track, clearly demonstrates that the occupation government is seeking to undermine efforts aimed at ending the war and to impose facts on the ground by force," Basem Naim said in a statement. [3] Former senior Fatah official Mohammed Dahlan, who is based in the United Arab Emirates, said in a Facebook post that Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and a senior adviser involved in the US initiative, had told him he was working with the Israeli side to stop attacks on Gaza. [3] Dahlan said contacts with the US were continuing to ensure the agreement was fully implemented, adding that its success now depended on Israel fully ending its daily attacks on Gaza. [3]
Turkish Condemnation of Attacks
Türkiye's Foreign Ministry statement said the strikes prove Netanyahu has no intention of peace and undermine mediation. [1] The Foreign Ministry says Israeli strikes undermine mediation efforts and urges global community to uphold international law. [1]
Broader Context Since Ceasefire
At least 1,230 Palestinians have been killed in strikes since the October ceasefire. [3] Four Israeli soldiers were killed over the same period, according to Israeli tallies. [3] Trump's Board of Peace, the U.S.-led body overseeing the ceasefire, published on Friday a 15-point roadmap setting out the final steps for implementing the agreement. [3] Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace's lead envoy for Gaza, said the strikes across Gaza came despite efforts by the board and mediators to bring Palestinian factions to agree on the roadmap for the implementation of Trump's plan. [3] He said in a post on X that he was working with parties, mediators and regional partners to "de-escalate and create the space for the full implementation of the President's plan." [3] "Achieving a lasting peace is hard but achievable if everyone makes their best efforts," Mladenov said. [3]
What to watch next: Senior White House and BoP officials indicated they remain confident Israel will adhere to the 20-point plan it initially agreed to, while contacts with the US continue to ensure full implementation of the agreement.
