Israeli strikes on Monday killed at least two Palestinians in separate parts of the Gaza Strip, health officials in the territory said, as armed confrontations unfolded between Hamas fighters and gunmen from an Israeli-backed militia.
Medics reported that one man was killed in an airstrike in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, and a separate strike in Gaza City killed another person and wounded others. The deaths are the latest episodes of violence since a U.S.-brokered ceasefire was signed in October following two years of full-scale war between Israel and Hamas.
Negotiations to implement elements of the ceasefire - among them commitments on the disarmament of Hamas and Israeli military pullbacks - have made little progress and are effectively stalled, according to officials and observers familiar with the situation. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on either of the strikes reported on Monday.
The ceasefire that began last October left Israeli forces in control of a large, depopulated zone that comprises well over half of Gaza, while Hamas retains control of the much narrower coastal strip that remains populated. Local medics report that more than 750 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire took effect. Israeli authorities say militants have killed four of its soldiers in the same period. Both sides have accused the other of violating the ceasefire.
Israeli officials say their operations target efforts by Hamas and other militant factions to carry out attacks. Against that backdrop of ongoing tension, residents and sources close to Hamas reported another confrontation on Monday involving an Israeli-backed militia operating in territory under Israeli control.
According to those accounts, militiamen crossed from an Israeli-controlled area into a Hamas-administered zone east of Khan Younis, where they encountered Palestinian fighters. As the militia members attempted to withdraw, a Hamas fighter fired an anti-tank grenade in the direction of their vehicle, witnesses and a Hamas source said. An explosion was heard, and there was no immediate information about casualties.
A video that was verified showed gunmen who appeared to be members of the militia, wearing black uniforms and carrying AK-pattern assault rifles, entering a Hamas-run area in eastern Khan Younis before the sound of gunfire is heard. There was no immediate comment from Hamas, which refers to such groups as "Israeli collaborators," nor from representatives of the militia.
Analysts and local observers say that although these pro-Israel militias remain small and localized, their emergence has increased pressure on Hamas and could complicate efforts to stabilise and reunify a Gaza that remains divided and heavily damaged. The groups are reported to be unpopular among local residents because they operate under Israeli control.
The incidents on Monday underscore persistent security fragility in Gaza and the stalled nature of broader political and security measures tied to the ceasefire agreement. With both sides trading blame for violations and implementation of key parts of the deal at an impasse, the humanitarian and political situation on the ground remains volatile.