The pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas is over, the Israel Defense Forces said a few minutes after 7 a.m. Friday local time, when the pause was due to end. Israel’s military said Hamas had “violated the operational pause and, in addition, fired toward Israeli territory.” The Washington Post could not immediately verify that claim. Hamas said in a subsequent statement that Israel had resumed operations in Gaza. Sirens were ringing in Israeli communities near the Gaza border as Israeli warplanes resumed strikes in Gaza, according to the IDF. The day before, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Israel had agreed to U.S. demands that it must minimize civilian deaths in Gaza once fighting resumes. On Thursday, eight more hostages and 30 Palestinian prisoners were freed.
