Israel will respond after Hamas handed over human remains that did not belong to missing Israeli hostages, which Israel considers a violation of the Gaza ceasefire, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday.

Donald Trump has backed Israel’s deadly strikes in Gaza that have killed at least 60 Palestinians, saying it has the right to “hit back” against Hamas. Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu 's office said he had ordered immediate “powerful attacks” after claiming Hamas had attacked Israeli forces in an area of the enclave under Israeli control.

An official from the Israel Defense Forces told NBC News that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for strikes in retaliation for a Hamas attack in Rafah.

Since an Israel-Hamas cease-fire deal came into effect, the U.S. effort to sustain it appears to have constrained Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel's military has begun striking the Gaza Strip again, as Israel and Hamas traded blame for violating the ceasefire brokered by President Trump.

Netanyahu’s far-right cabinet has called for harsh measures in response, with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich urging the re-arrest of Palestinians released in exchanges “in response to Hamas’s repeated and ongoing violations”. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said the correct response was to “destroy [Hamas] completely”.

Hamas has condemned Israel for “criminal bombings” across Gaza that killed at least 50 people, including 22 children, despite an ongoing ceasefire. The strikes followed orders from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after an Israeli soldier was killed in Rafah.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Jerusalem on Thursday to address issues regarding the Gaza cease-fire.