IDF drone strike hits gunmen in southern Gaza; three Hamas cops reportedly killed
Military says it fired on men approaching troops east of Rafah, again warns Gazans to stay away from soldiers still deployed as per truce deal; 2nd strike was warning to car near soldiers
The Israel Defense Forces said it carried out a pair of drone strikes in the Gaza Strip on Sunday — one targeting a group of gunmen who were approaching Israeli forces in one area and the other as a warning when a car drove near soldiers in another.
Palestinian media reported that the first drone strike killed three Hamas police officers east of the city of Rafah in the southern Strip, which the terror group called “a serious violation” of the ceasefire in effect since January 19.
“The IDF continues to call on Gazans to obey the IDF instructions and not approach the forces deployed to the area,” the Israeli military said.
The Hamas-controlled interior ministry in Gaza said it “condemns this crime and calls upon the mediators and the international community to compel the occupation to stop targeting the police force, which is a civil apparatus.”
It claimed the policemen were deployed in the area to secure the entry of aid trucks into Gaza.
Hamas, in its own response, said “The treacherous firing carried out by a Zionist drone this morning east of Rafah city, targeting police elements tasked with securing the entry of aid… is considered a serious violation of the ceasefire agreement.”
Later in the day, the IDF confirmed carrying out another drone strike that had been reported in Palestinian media, saying it was a warning after suspects in a vehicle tried to drive to the Strip’s north via an unapproved route, in violation of the ceasefire.
There were no immediate reports of injuries.
Separately, the IDF said it fired warning shots in several areas of Gaza when Palestinian suspects approached areas where troops were deployed.
Amid the ongoing ceasefire, the military has carried out several drone strikes as warnings after Palestinians have attempted to drive to the Strip’s north via unapproved routes. Northbound vehicular traffic is only permitted on the Salah a-Din road, where a private security company is inspecting cars heading to northern Gaza to ensure Hamas, the terror group that rules the Strip, is not using the vehicles to move weapons and fighters.
Meanwhile, the IDF said it foiled an attempt to smuggle an assault rifle into Israel from Egypt using a drone.
The drone had been identified as crossing the border from Egypt into Israel, and troops dispatched to the scene shot it down. The soldiers found that the drone was ferrying a rifle and ammunition, according to the IDF.
In recent months there have been frequent attempts to bring weapons over the Egypt border using drones.
כוחות צה״ל זיהו מוקדם יותר היום רחפן שחצה משטח מצרים לשטח מדינת ישראל במרחב חטיבת פארן.
הרחפן הופל על ידי כוחות צה"ל שהגיעו לנקודה ואיתרו את הרחפן ועליו כלי נשק ותחמושת.
אמצעי הלחימה שהוחרמו הועברו לטיפול כוחות הביטחון pic.twitter.com/XdfeYrG6KG— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) February 16, 2025
The incidents came amid a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas reached in January after some 15 months of fighting sparked by the terror group’s October 7, 2023, invasion of southern Israel, when terrorists killed some 1,200 people and took 251 hostages.
Israeli troops have so far withdrawn from much of the Strip, including the Netzarim Corridor, which separates the north and south of the enclave. The IDF is still stationed along the so-called Philadelphi Corridor, along the Gaza-Egypt border.
The deal does not require Israel to begin withdrawing from that area until the end of the ceasefire’s ongoing first phase.
Hamas and its ally Palestinian Islamic Jihad on Saturday released three hostages, and Israel released hundreds of Palestinian security prisoners, in accordance with the deal.
Hamas had said last Monday it would delay the release, prompting US President Donald Trump to suggest Israel issue an ultimatum and demand the release of all hostages.
The terror group accused Israel of violating the truce, including by not allowing mobile homes and earthmoving equipment into the rubble-strewn Strip.
Despite images of those materials lined up outside the Rafah Border Crossing into southern Gaza late last week, Hebrew media reported Sunday morning that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not approved the entry of the materials into the Palestinian enclave.
Netanyahu has thus far refused to allow Israel’s negotiators to engage in talks on the agreement’s second phase, which would see the release of the remaining hostages in exchange for a permanent end to the war.
Agencies contributed to this report.
