‘Strength and Sword’: IDF renews heavy strikes against Hamas in Gaza
“This follows Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all of the proposals it has received,” the Israeli prime minister’s office stated • IDF Home Front Command orders schools near the border closed until further notice.
Smoke rises after an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City, March 18, 2025. Photo by Ali Hassan/Flash90.
(March 17, 2025 / JNS)
The Israeli military conducted “extensive” strikes against Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip overnight Monday, the Israel Defense Forces announced early on Tuesday morning.
“This follows Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all of the proposals it has received from U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and from the mediators,” the Israeli prime minister’s office stated.
The IDF is “attacking targets of the Hamas terrorist organization throughout the Gaza Strip in order to achieve the objectives of the war as they have been determined by the political echelon including the release of all of our hostages, the living and the deceased,” the statement continued. “Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength.”
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White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News that Jerusalem had consulted the Trump administration before launching the operation, which the Israeli military named “Strength and Sword.”
U.S. President Donald Trump “has made it clear: Hamas, the Houthis, Iran, all those who seek to terrorize not just Israel but also the United States of America will see a price to pay. All hell will break loose,” Leavitt said.
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All of “the terrorists in the Middle East” should take Trump “very seriously when he says he is not afraid to stand for law-abiding people … and our friend and our ally Israel,” she added.
Al Jazeera and other Arab media reported that Mahmoud Abu Watfa, a deputy minister in Gaza’s Hamas-run Interior Ministry, was among several senior Hamas figures killed in the strikes.
Egyptian television station Sada El-Balad reported that Abu Obeida al-Jamasi, a member of Hamas’s political bureau and head of its emergency committee, was also killed.
Several outlets, including Saudi news channel Al Hadath, reported the death of Bahjat Abu Sultan, head of central operations in the Gaza Interior Ministry.
IDF Spokesperson Col. Avichay Adraee issued an urgent warning Tuesday to residents of Gaza, urging those in specific areas to evacuate immediately as Israeli forces intensified their operations.
In a statement posted on X, Adraee identified Beit Hanoun, Khirbet Khaza’a, and Abasan al-Kabira and al-Jadida as dangerous combat zones. He called on civilians to relocate to designated shelters in western Gaza City and Khan Yunis for their safety, stressing that remaining in these areas would put their lives at risk.
Meanwhile, the IDF Home Front Command has instructed municipalities near the Gaza border to close schools until further notice.
“Following a situation assessment, it was decided that the Gaza envelope will move from a full activity level to a reduced activity level, which does not allow for educational activities,” according to the statement.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a high-level security assessment on Tuesday at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv. The meeting included Defense Minister Israel Katz, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, and senior security officials.
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon stated on Monday night in New York that the U.N. Security Council would convene on Tuesday to discuss the situation in Gaza.
“It is time for the countries of the world to take seriously our unwavering commitment to bring back all our hostages home and defeat the enemy,” the Israeli envoy stated. “Nothing will stop us from fighting to free our hostages, who have been held in brutal Hamas captivity for 527 days. We will show no mercy against our enemies while our hostages languish in Hamas terror tunnels.”
An Israeli official “claimed that in recent days during the ceasefire Hamas has been preparing to carry out new attacks against Israel and has taken steps to rearm,” Axios reported. “The official said the IDF kept the operational plan top secret and within a relatively small circle in order to surprise Hamas.”
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