Timeline of Israel's actions in Gaza after end of ceasefire with Hamas

Aid trucks have slowly begun entering Gaza after an 11-week blockade.

May 27, 2025, 4:27 PM

In the more than two months since Israeli forces resumed military operations in Gaza -- breaking the ceasefire -- international organizations such as the United Nations and the World Health Organization said the humanitarian crisis has worsened in the strip.

The resumption of hostilities followed a blockade on all humanitarian aid, which has caused widespread malnutrition and famine-like conditions, according to food security experts at the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) initiative.

As aid finally re-enters Gaza, the Israeli government has claimed Hamas is stealing aid meant for civilians, which Hamas disputes.

Meanwhile, strikes by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) -- in an attempt to target Hamas and to pressure the militant group to release the remaining 58 hostages -- have resulted in the accidental deaths of paramedics and humanitarian workers.

ABC News takes a look at key dates and developments since the temporary ceasefire ended.

March 18

Israeli forces resume military operations after a six-week temporary ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. It comes after Israel imposed a total humanitarian aid blockade on March 2 to pressure Hamas to release the remaining hostages.

March 19

The Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health (MOH) said five United Nations (U.N.) staffers have been injured after an attack in central Gaza and one staffer has died.

The IDF denies reports that it struck a U.N. compound in Deir al Balah. The IDF acknowledges about a month later that it struck the facility by mistake.

U.N. staffers arrive at Al Aqsa Hospital in Deir al Balah, in central Gaza, after being injured during an attack on March 19, 2025.
Zuher Dahlan

March 21

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the IDF has been instructed to seize more territory in Gaza as it expands its ground operation.

March 23

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) says in a post on X that ambulances came under attack as staff were responding to an incident in Rafah, in southern Gaza, and that EMTs have been injured.

The MOH also said the death toll has surpassed 50,000 since Oct. 7, 2023, when the war in Gaza began after Hamas launched a surprise terrorist attack on southern Israel, killing nearly 1,200 and taking 251 others hostage.

March 24

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) released a statement saying one of its headquarters in Rafah was struck by an "explosive projectile despite being clearly marked and notified to all parties."

The IDF says it mistakenly struck the ICRC building after an "incorrect" identification of a supposed threat.

ICRC headquarters in Rafah, in southern Gaza, is struck by an “explosive projectile" on March 24, 2025.
@a7_b86/Instagram

March 26

The largest protests against Hamas rule in Gaza occur, with hundreds in the north chanting anti-Hamas slogans, calling for Hamas to accept any kind of ceasefire, return hostages and to give up power to end the war.

March 27

WFP warns that hundreds of thousands of people are at risk of "severe hunger and malnutrition" in Gaza.

March 30

The PRCS said it has recovered the bodies of eight of its medics killed in Rafah after trying to reach them for one week. The group also says it has recovered the bodies of six civil defense members and one U.N. staff member.

In a statement, the IDF says troops opened fire on the vehicles because they were unmarked and moving suspiciously with their headlights off.

April 1

The United Nations' World Food Programme (WFP) says all 25 supported bakeries have shut down due to a lack of fuel and flour. A week earlier, the U.N. pulled out 30% of its international staff in Gaza due to the risk of attack and/or death.

April 2

The total blockade enters its first month. Additionally, Palestinian officials claim an Israeli strike has hit a clinic in Jabalia, in northern Gaza, run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

Palestinian officials claim an Israeli strike hit a clinic in Jabalia, in northern Gaza, run by UNRWA on April 2, 2025.
Obtained by ABC News

April 5

Newly released video from the PRCS, verified by ABC News, appears to show the moment a Gazan medic and Palestinian Red Crescent convoy came under gunfire.

In a statement, the U.N. said the video "appears to show Israeli tanks firing on clearly marked emergency vehicles, refuting claims that the ambulances were unidentifiable or operating without sirens."

After the emergence of the video, the IDF said in a statement to ABC News that the incident was "under thorough examination."

April 6

The Hamas-run Government Media Office in Gaza claims the southern city of Rafah has been transformed into a "closed military zone."

The IDF confirms to ABC News that it has not declared the city of Rafah a closed military zone but that it is operating in the area against Hamas targets.

The MOH also says 13,000 patients need to leave Gaza to receive specialized medical treatment but are unable to do so due to the closure of the border crossings.

April 7

The Israeli Prime Minister's office and the IDF deny reports that humanitarian aid has started entering Gaza again in separate statements after an Israeli media report said the IDF was preparing to resume aid deliveries.

The IDF also says it investigating the attack that killed 15 paramedics and emergency workers "in greater depth."

Netanyahu visits the White House, marking his second visit since Trump took office.

April 13

The IDF and the Israel Security Agency strike Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital, the largest functioning hospital in Gaza City, claiming they were targeting a Hamas command and control center within the hospital.

April 16

The IDF confirms it controls approximately 30% of land in Gaza, which is being controlled as operational buffer zones.

Katz says the country does not plan to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.

April 20

The IDF holds a briefing on its report regarding the March incident in which 15 paramedics and rescue workers were killed in Rafah by IDF forces.

The IDF announces a deputy commander will be dismissed from his position and its report into the incident says, "the examination identified several professional failures, breaches of orders, and a failure to fully report the incident."

April 24

The IDF acknowledges it struck a U.N. facility in Deri-al-Balah by mistake on March 19 after previously denying the strike.

IDF Chief Eyal Zamir says the operation in Gaza will become more forceful if the remaining hostages aren't released.

Palestinians queue for a hot meal at a charity kitchen run by the United Nation's World Food Programme (WFP) at the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, April 26, 2025.
Eyad Baba/AFP via Getty Images

April 28

The International Court of Justice, the top U.N. court, holds oral arguments in a case to decide if Israel is required to allow aid organizations to provide unimpeded aid in Gaza and the West Bank.

The WFP says it has delivered its last remaining food stocks to hot meal kitchens in Gaza, and it expects to fully run out of food in the coming days.

April 29

UNRWA, the main humanitarian agency operating in Gaza, says in a post on X that it has nearly 3,000 trucks of lifesaving aid waiting to enter Gaza once the crossings reopen.

May 2

The IDF will expand ongoing operations in Gaza to "increase military pressure," according to an Israeli security official. The total aid blockade enters its second month.

Activists with the Freedom Flotilla Coalition say a humanitarian ship headed to Gaza was bombed by a drone in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Malta.

May 5

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet approves an operational plan named "Gideon's Chariots" for the expansion of the war in Gaza, according to an IDF spokesperson.

The plan includes the occupation of parts of Gaza's territory and "moving" Palestinians to the south of Gaza, paving the way for a full military occupation of all of Gaza. It also approves the "possibility" of allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza, a senior political source tells ABC News.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference in Jerusalem, May 21, 2025.
Ronen Zvulun/Pool via AP

Sources reveal that Israel plans to control the distribution humanitarian aid in Gaza using distribution centers and private American contractors.

May 7

The nonprofit group World Central Kitchen announces it has run out of supplies and ingredients needed to cook meals or bake bread in Gaza.

Israel's Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) said back in April that humanitarian personnel have been allowed to enter and exit Gaza to support humanitarian efforts in the strip.

Katz says Israel will remain in Gaza after "Gideon's Chariots" is complete.

"Unlike in the past, the IDF will remain in any area that is conquered, in order to prevent the return of terrorism and to purge and thwart any threat," Katz says.

May 12

Edan Alexander, the last living American who was held hostage by Hamas in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, is released, according to the IDF. The deal is negotiated by the Trump administration directly with Hamas.

Edan Alexander is reunited with his father Adi, mother Yael and a sibling at Reim Military Base in Israel, May 12, 2025.
Israel Prime Minister's Office

The IDF also confirms it struck Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, claiming it killed multiple members of Hamas. Hamas military leader Mohammed Sinwar was the target, according to an Israeli source familiar with the matter.

Additionally, a new report from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification partnership -- whose members include the World Health Organization -- finds that Gaza's entire population is experiencing critical levels of hunger.

May 15

The U.N. says it will not partake in the U.S.-backed humanitarian operation in Gaza, in which private American contractors will set up aid distribution points.

The plan is not impartial, neutral or independent, according to deputy U.N. spokesperson Farhan Haq.

Satellite imagery appears to show the construction of new aid distribution sites in Rafah, Gaza.
Planet Labs PBC

May 16

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk calls the escalation of attacks in Gaza and blockade of aid "tantamount to ethnic cleansing."

May 18

Gaza's MOH says no hospital in northern Gaza is operational. The ministry says Beit Hanoun and Kamal Adwan Hospital have been destroyed and Indonesian Hospital is under siege by Israeli forces.

The IDF announces start of the "Gideon's Chariots" ground offensive in Gaza.

The Hostage Families Forum has repeatedly stated it disapproves of this plan, citing danger to the remaining hostages in Gaza. It is believed that at least 20 hostages in Gaza are still alive.

May 19

Netanyahu says Israel will allow a "basic amount" of aid to enter Gaza. COGAT later says in a post on X that five U.N. aid trucks entered Gaza that day.

May 21

Netanyahu says during a press conference that Israel "appears" to have killed Hamas military leader Mohammed Sinwar. He also says the entire Gaza Strip will be under Israel's security control at the end of the war.

May 22

The U.N. says 90 loaded trucks of humanitarian aid left the Kerem Shalom crossing to multiple destinations across Gaza, bringing an end to the 11-week blockade. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says it's not enough to meet the needs of Gaza's population.

May 25

Israel's army is controlling about 77% of the land as it continues its military operations, according to Reuters.

Palestinians struggle to receive cooked food distributed at a community kitchen in the Muwasi area of Khan Younis, in the Gaza Strip, May 23, 2025.
Abdel Kareem Hana/AP

May 26

The IDF announces it is launching its new humanitarian aid program, beginning with a distribution center in Rafah.

"The center operates on a 'moving film' system -- a citizen arrives, receives a food package for a week for his family, and leaves," an IDF statement reads in part.

An Israeli official tells ABC News: the negotiations on a Gaza ceasefire are continuing, but there is no breakthrough.

ABC News' Will Gretsky, Ellie Kaufman and Jordana Miller contributed to this report.

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