LEILA FADEL, HOST:
In Gaza overnight, a series of punishing and deadly Israeli airstrikes took Palestinians by surprise.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Screaming in non-English language).
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
A Palestinian woman in Gaza City there, screaming for her children. That was a scene in a hospital in the north. More than 400 Palestinians have been killed and hundreds more injured, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. And Hamas says the airstrikes killed five of its senior leaders. Now, the strikes are the most intensive violence since a tenuous ceasefire began in January between Israel and Hamas as they negotiated an end to the war.
FADEL: NPR's Hadeel Al-Shalchi joins us now from Tel Aviv with the latest. Good morning, Hadeel.
HADEEL AL-SHALCHI, BYLINE: Good morning.
FADEL: So why is Israel launching this attack now?
AL-SHALCHI: Well, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been threatening this whole time to go back to war if Hamas did not release more hostages. This time, Israel says it is targeting Hamas militant commanders, wants to degrade Hamas' ability to rearm. That's according to an Israeli official who wasn't authorized to speak publicly.
Just a reminder - the first phase of the ceasefire ended on March 1. Over six weeks, Hamas released 33 hostages. Israel freed almost 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails. The second phase was supposed to see a total withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and a permanent end to the war. But instead of starting those second-phase talks, Israel came back and said it wanted an extension of the first phase, where Hamas would return half the living hostages still held in Gaza.
FADEL: So what did Hamas say?
AL-SHALCHI: Well, Hamas said that it had held up its end of the first phase of the deal and wanted to start second-phase deal talks - refused the extension, which has led to these attacks. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that, quote, "the gates of hell will open in Gaza" if all the hostages are not returned. And then we also know that the White House spokesperson, Karoline Leavitt, confirmed that Israel consulted the Trump administration before the strikes.
FADEL: And what are we hearing from inside Gaza?
AL-SHALCHI: I mean, explosions could be heard across the strip. The Gaza Health Ministry says hundreds of Palestinians have been killed, including children. NPR's Gaza producer, Anas Baba, was at Al-Ahli Hospital this morning.
ANAS BABA, BYLINE: Dozens of bodies lay in every corner here in front of me, wrapped in winter blankets brought by relatives or maybe some ambulances. Women and children, entire families lay dead in front of me here. The relatives are wailing. The smell of blood mixed with gunpowder and burning flesh is returned once more in Gaza.
AL-SHALCHI: Also, an Israeli military spokesman warned residents in several Gaza neighborhoods to start evacuating immediately.
FADEL: So we heard there Anas describe really what sounds like war again. Do these strikes mean the ceasefire is done and the war is back on?
AL-SHALCHI: So it might be a little too early to tell if the war is fully back on or what these strikes mean exactly for the ceasefire. You know, in recent weeks, Israel has been steadily increasing strikes in Gaza. Hamas hasn't yet responded with its own strikes. But today's assault is, of course, a pressure tactic by Israel to get Hamas to accept that extension, and they're a huge step back. Israel has blocked all aid, including food and medical supplies, three weeks ago, so aid groups are rationing quickly dwindling supplies. And of course, you know, what does this mean for the fate of the hostages still inside Gaza? Israel says 59 remain held by Hamas, 24 of whom are still believed to be alive.
FADEL: NPR's Hadeel Al-Shalchi in Tel Aviv. Thank you for your reporting, Hadeel.
AL-SHALCHI: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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