Israeli strike kills one in Gaza as sides trade blame for truce violations

An Israeli airstrike killed a Palestinian man in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, health authorities said, as Israel and Hamas traded blame for daily violations of a fragile ceasefire that has largely halted two years of war.

The Israeli military said its aircraft struck a militant who was posing a threat to its forces. 

Al-Ahli Hospital confirmed that one man was killed in the airstrike near a vegetable market in the Shejaia suburb of Gaza City. His identity was not immediately known. 

The Israeli military said on Saturday that its troops were attacked by militants in areas of Gaza where its forces are still deployed as part of the U.S.-backed ceasefire agreement. 

Hamas did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In a separate statement, it listed a series of what it said were Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreed in October, which have killed more than 200 people.

At least 236 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed in Israeli strikes since the ceasefire took effect, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

Three Israeli soldiers have been killed by Palestinian gunmen in the same period, according to the military, which says its strikes have targeted dozens of militants.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel will continue to retaliate for, and thwart, any attempts to harm its troops in Gaza and threatened to keep up action against Hamas. 

"There are still Hamas pockets in the areas under our control in Gaza, and we are systematically eliminating them," Netanyahu said in broadcast remarks at the start of his cabinet meeting in Jerusalem. 

Netanyahu added that any Israeli action in Gaza is reported to Washington. Hamas in its statement said the United States was not doing enough to ensure Israel abides by the ceasefire agreement. 

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