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      Israel Expands Gaza Offensive and Issues Fresh Evacuation Orders

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      The Israeli military took control of more territory and said that operations had moved into additional areas in the north and south of the enclave.Israeli forces were expanding their offensive in Gaza on Sunday, taking control of more territory and issuing fresh evacuation orders for residents who had only recently returned to their homes.The Israeli military renewed its offensive in Gaza this past week after talks to extend a fragile, temporary cease-fire that came into effect in mid-January reached an impasse. On Sunday, it said that those operations had moved into additional areas in the north and south of the enclave.Israel said that its troops had begun operating in Beit Hanoun, in northern Gaza, to expand a buffer zone. The military also said that it had carried out more airstrikes against Hamas targets and infrastructure and that it was allowing people to evacuate.The military also separately issued an evacuation order for the Tal al-Sultan neighborhood of the southern city of Rafah, telling residents to leave on foot along a specific route and barring the movement of vehicles.The Rafah municipality said in a statement that thousands of families were being forced to flee on foot under bombardment during the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. That left them homeless amid a severe shortage of basic necessities and tents because of the Israeli government’s closure of the crossings into Gaza, the municipality noted.Buildings destroyed by overnight Israeli strikes in central Gaza on Sunday.Eyad Baba/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Rockets Fired From Lebanon Prompt Israeli Strikes

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      The volley broke months of relative quiet in northern Israel after a U.S.-backed truce. Israel retaliated by attacking sites it said were linked to Hezbollah.Israeli forces struck sites in southern Lebanon on Saturday that it said were linked to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, hours after rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israel for the first time in months.The attacks were the latest example of how the renewed Israeli offensive in Gaza was rippling across the Middle East. They also disrupted months of relative calm in northern Israel, where residents displaced by more than a year of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah have begun returning home.The Israeli military said that it had shot down three rockets from Lebanon, and there were no reports of casualties. The volley was the first of its kind since last November, when Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a cease-fire brokered by the United States and France.Hezbollah denied any involvement in the rocket fire, which followed Israel’s resumed offensive in Gaza this week against the Lebanese group’s Palestinian ally Hamas. Those Israeli attacks have already killed more than 600 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials, who do not distinguish between civilians and combatants.After the Hamas-led assault on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which ignited the Gaza war, the militant group’s allies across the Middle East began attacking Israel in solidarity. Last year, that escalated to a full-blown war between Israel and Hezbollah, in which Israel assassinated Hezbollah’s leadership and launched a ground invasion into southern Lebanon.Under the terms of the cease-fire, the Lebanese government is supposed to prevent armed groups like Hezbollah from attacking Israel from Lebanon.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Hamas Fires Rockets at Tel Aviv as Israel Expands Gaza Ground Operations

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      A two-month cease-fire in Gaza collapsed this week amid a renewed Israeli bombardment. The fighting now looks like it is escalating back to full-scale war.Hamas fired its first barrage of rockets in months into Israeli territory on Thursday as Israeli troops expanded their ground raids in northern Gaza in what looked increasingly like a slide back into full-scale war.There were no reports of casualties from the rockets, which were fired at Tel Aviv. The Israeli military said they were either intercepted or fell in open areas. But the barrage served as a show of resilience from the Palestinian armed group despite more than a year of war with Israel.A two-month cease-fire collapsed this week with an Israeli aerial bombardment of Gaza, which the military said had targeted Hamas. Israel argued that the truce could not continue unless Hamas released more hostages, while Hamas accused Israel of violating the cease-fire agreement.Israel’s renewed assault has killed more than 500 people in Gaza in three days, including scores of children, the Gaza health ministry said on Thursday. Those figures do not distinguish between civilians and combatants.Earlier on Thursday, the Israeli military said its forces had begun conducting “ground activity” near Beit Lahia, in northern Gaza. That came less than a day after Israel announced that it had recaptured part of the Netzarim corridor in central Gaza, which divides the north of the territory from the south. Israel had withdrawn from the corridor as part of the truce.Hamas said at least five of its top leaders in Gaza were among about 400 people killed by Israel on Tuesday in a heavy bombardment, according to Gaza officials. Hamas rarely provides information as to whether those killed in Israeli attacks were members of the armed group.Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has vowed to step up pressure on Hamas until the group capitulates and releases the dozens of Israeli and foreign hostages still being held in Gaza.Hamas officials say Israel will not gain more favorable terms for a cease-fire by resuming the war.The first phase of the January cease-fire ended in early March. Mediators like the United States were trying to broker a deal between Israel and Hamas on the next steps in the truce, including a permanent end to the war and the release of the remaining living hostages in Gaza.But Israel has been unwilling to end the conflict permanently as long as Hamas remains in power in Gaza. Hamas is refusing to disband its armed battalions, send its leaders in Gaza into exile or release many more hostages unless Israel commits to a permanent end to the war.About 24 living Israeli and foreign hostages — as well as the remains of more than 30 others — are believed to still be in Gaza, according to the Israeli government.Hamas and its allies abducted about 250 people during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that ignited the war. More

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      Why Did Israel Resume Airstrikes on Gaza? What to Know About the Attacks

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      The deadly airstrikes shattered a period of relative calm and raised the prospect of a return to all-out war.Israeli forces on Tuesday launched the largest and most deadly attacks on Gaza since a cease-fire with Hamas that began roughly two months ago. The barrage killed hundreds of people, according to health authorities in the enclave.As of midday Tuesday, it remained unclear whether the strikes were a brief attempt to force Hamas to compromise in cease-fire talks or the beginning of a new phase in the conflict.Here’s what you need to know:What happened with the latest strikes?Why did Israel resume airstrikes on Gaza?How did cease-fire negotiations break down?How did Hamas respond to the Israeli airstrikes?How many hostages remain in Gaza?What happened with the latest strikes? More

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      Israel Carries Out ‘Extensive Strikes’ in Gaza, Imperiling Cease-Fire

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      Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he had ordered the attack early Tuesday, saying Israel would “act against Hamas with increasing military strength.”A camera in Israel captured explosions over Gaza early Tuesday.Associated PressIsraeli forces launched a large-scale attack across the Gaza Strip early Tuesday, in the first major strikes on the territory since Israel’s cease-fire with Hamas began roughly two months ago. Dozens of Palestinians were killed, according to Gaza’s health ministry.The Israeli military said on Telegram just before 2:30 a.m. local time that it was “conducting extensive strikes on terror targets belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip.” The attack was ordered by Israel’s political leadership, it said.Shortly afterward, Hamas said in a statement that the Israeli government had “resumed their aggression” in the Gaza Strip. Gaza residents reported intense strikes across the territory.Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said Israel had consulted the White House before launching the strikes.“As President Trump has made clear, Hamas, the Houthis, all those who seek to terrorize not just Israel but also the United States of America, will see a price to pay,” Ms. Leavitt said on Fox News on Monday night. “All hell will break loose.”It was unclear whether the attack effectively ended the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas that took effect in mid-January. Hamas, in its statement, accused Israel of deciding to “overturn the cease-fire agreement, exposing the prisoners in Gaza to an unknown fate,” referring to the remaining hostages seized in the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.The office of the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said in a statement that he and the defense minister, Israel Katz, had instructed the military to act, citing “repeated refusal” by Hamas “to release our hostages” and saying the militants had rejected all proposals from Steve Witkoff, the U.S. envoy to the Middle East, and other mediators.“Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength,” the statement said.At least 44 Palestinians, including five children, were killed in the wave of Israeli strikes and more than 50 others were wounded, according to the Gazan Ministry of Health.Gaza’s Civil Defense, the main emergency service in the Palestinian territory, said on Telegram that its teams were facing significant operating difficulties because of “multiple targets being struck at the same time.”Mediators, including the United States, Qatar and Egypt, have been involved in negotiating the next steps in the cease-fire agreement, which would involve a permanent end to the war. But they have made little headway, given the entrenched disagreements between the two sides. Israel began attacking Gaza shortly after the October 2023 attack.Since the cease-fire took effect, Israel has conducted a string of smaller strikes on Gaza, which Hamas says have killed more than 150 people, at least some of them civilians. It has accused Israel of repeatedly violating the truce agreement by continuing military operations.Raja Abdulrahim More

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      Bardella, Leader of France’s Far-Right National Rally, Heads to Israel

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      As Jordan Bardella, its young president, tries to distance the party from its history of antisemitism, it is making common cause with Israel against “Islamist ideology.”Jordan Bardella, the young president of France’s far-right National Rally, plans to visit Israel this month in a powerful symbol of his party’s shift from the home of French antisemitism to the country’s most vociferous friend of the Jews.“Antisemitism is a poison,” Mr. Bardella told Le Journal du Dimanche, a Sunday newspaper, announcing that he plans to attend a Jerusalem conference on that subject in late March and visit areas of Israel attacked by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. “Our engagement in this combat is absolute.”No leader of the far-right party, including its perennial presidential candidate, Marine Le Pen, has previously made an official visit to Israel. But the party’s stand against what it calls “Islamist ideology,” has led it to a sweeping embrace of Israel and the country’s fight against Hamas and Hezbollah. At the same time, the National Rally’s vehement anti-immigrant ideology, aimed particularly at Muslims, has earned it the support of some French Jews.No leader of the far-right party, including its perennial presidential candidate, Marine Le Pen, has previously made an official visit to Israel.Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty ImagesMany French Jews, however, remain steadfast in their opposition to the party. Bernard-Henri Lévy, a prominent intellectual and author last year of the book “Israel Alone,” an impassioned paean to Israel in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 attack, immediately announced that he had dropped out of the Jerusalem conference because Mr. Bardella is going. He informed President Isaac Herzog of Israel of his decision.Jean-Marie Le Pen, the founder of the National Front, which became the National Rally in 2018, famously dismissed the Holocaust as a “detail” of history and called the Nazi occupation of France “not particularly inhumane,” despite the deportation of more than 75,000 Jews to Hitler’s death camps.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Where the Gaza Cease-Fire Deal Goes Now Is Uncertain. Here’s What to Know.

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      As negotiators are holding discussions on multiple tracks, Palestinians and Israelis are in limbo.Nearly a week after the first stage of Israel and Hamas’s cease-fire expired, both Palestinians and Israelis are in limbo, uncertain how long the truce will hold.The Trump administration, the Arab world, Israel, Hamas and others are now wrangling over the future of the Gaza Strip in a complex series of negotiations — some of which are unfolding along different channels, adding to the confusion.Here’s a look at the state of the cease-fire talks and who is involved.Israel and Hamas are negotiating through mediators.In mid-January, after 15 months of devastating war, Israel and Hamas agreed to a truce that would free hostages held in Gaza since the Hamas-led October 2023 attack on southern Israel, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.But the agreement did not end the war. Instead, the two sides committed to a complex, multiphase plan meant to build momentum toward a comprehensive cease-fire. They were supposed to negotiate terms for the full truce during the first stage, which lasted six weeks.Last weekend, the six weeks elapsed with little apparent success toward that goal, despite efforts by Qatar and Egypt, who have been mediating the talks. (Israel and Hamas do not negotiate directly.)Released Palestinian prisoners celebrating as they arrived in the Gaza Strip in February.Saher Alghorra for The New York TimesWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Israel Halts Aid to Gaza and Proposes New Cease-Fire Framework

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      Israel has called for Hamas to accept a temporary extension of the existing cease-fire deal, and to release more hostages.Israel announced on Sunday that it was immediately halting the entry of all goods and humanitarian assistance into Gaza, trying to force Hamas into accepting a temporary extension of the cease-fire in the war.The move disrupts the existing, agreed-upon framework for negotiating a permanent end to the war and puts the fate of the hostages into uncharted territory. The draconian halt on goods and aid, including fuel, is also likely to worsen conditions for the roughly two million inhabitants of Gaza, after the 15-month war left much of the coastal enclave in ruins.The initial, six-week phase of the original deal between Israel and Hamas expired on Saturday. Though it was punctured by setbacks and mutual accusations of violations, it ultimately saw at least a temporary cessation in the fighting and the exchange of 25 living Israeli hostages and the remains of eight dead ones for about 1,500 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. That deal also allowed for a significant increase of aid into Gaza.The next phase of the agreement called for a full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and a commitment to a permanent cease-fire in return for the release of all the remaining living hostages in Gaza, who are being held in inhumane conditions, according to reports from hostages who have been freed.Instead, hours before its announcement about the halt of aid, Israel proposed a seven-week extension of the temporary cease-fire, during which Hamas must release half the remaining living hostages as well as the remains of half the deceased ones. Upon conclusion of that extension, if agreement were reached on a permanent cease-fire, then all the remaining hostages would have to be released, the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.“Israel will not allow a cease-fire without the release of our hostages,” Mr. Netanyahu’s office said in a statement on Sunday.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More