TEHRAN – The Israeli occupation regime has committed further violations of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, killing civilians and closing the Rafah border crossing.
Occupation regime warplanes carried out new attacks in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip and Jabalia in the north, killing at least two Palestinians and wounding many others.
According to the Gaza government media office, the occupation forces have violated the ceasefire agreement at least 47 times since it entered into force on October 11.
There have also been reports of incidents in Rafah between resistance forces and Palestinian militias that have served the interests of Israeli military intelligence during the Gaza massacre. These militias remain under the protection of the Israeli military. Experts say occupation forces likely clashed with Palestinian resistance forces to protect militias backed by the Israeli regime.
At least four Israeli-backed militia groups remain active within the regime-occupied Gaza Strip. Israeli invaders are facilitating the supply of arms, vehicles, money and food to the most influential of these militias, reportedly belonging to Yasser Abu Shabab, a former member of Daesh based in far southern Gaza.
Analysts say Israel is trying to stir up unrest and violence among Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Hamas says it is working to restore order.
The occupation regime also announced that the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt would remain closed “until further notice.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office added that reopening the crossing would be considered depending on Hamas’s actions regarding the return of the prisoners’ bodies.
Blocking the access of vital machinery needed to recover the bodies of Palestinian and Israeli prisoners of war killed in Israeli airstrikes and buried under rubble will ironically delay the return of the bodies of prisoners of war that the occupation authorities publicly claim they want.
Holding on the Egyptian side of the border, where a “surge” was expected under the ceasefire agreement, and blocking the entry of much-needed humanitarian aid trucks is another serious violation of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
In response, Hamas issued a statement calling Netanyahu’s decision “a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement and a denial of commitments to mediators and guarantors.”
Hamas warned that efforts to recover and hand over Israeli prisoners would be delayed if the crossing remained closed, preventing the evacuation of the wounded and sick, restricting the movement of civilians, and blocking access to equipment needed to find missing people and identify bodies from beneath the rubble.
This leaves the entire ceasefire in limbo, with the possibility that the Palestinian resistance forces may respond by returning to operations against Israeli infantry.
Izzat al-Rishek, a senior Hamas official, said the Palestinian resistance “reaffirms its commitment to the ceasefire agreement and emphasizes that the Zionist occupiers are the party who continues to violate the agreement and fabricate baseless pretexts to justify its crimes.”
“Prime Minister Netanyahu’s attempts to evade and repudiate his commitments are under pressure from extremist terrorist coalitions in an effort to avoid accountability before mediators and guarantors.”
Hamas’s militant group Al-Qassam Brigades also reaffirmed the resistance’s compliance with the agreement, saying it had “handed over all living prisoners and all bodies that could be reached.”
The movement added: “Some bodies (of Israeli prisoners of war) still require special equipment and great effort to find and recover, and we are working hard to close this file.”
The Gaza Ministry of Health has released updated information on the number of victims and bodies recovered from the ongoing massacre.
The ministry reported that 11 bodies remain buried under rubble from a massacre committed by occupation forces against families in Gaza’s northern Zeitoun district.
It also confirmed that the overall death toll from the genocidal war has increased to “68,159 martyrs and 170,203 wounded since October 7, 2023.”
Since the ceasefire was agreed on October 11, 2025, the ministry recorded that “38 martyrs, 143 wounded and 404 bodies have been recovered.”