CAIRO, March 17. /TASS/. About 160 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the ceasefire was introduced there, the Palestinian movement Hamas, which controls the enclave, said.

"Israel continues to violate the ceasefire and carry out attacks against Palestinian civilians: the latest one, carried out by a drone in the center of Gaza, killed five people. The total number of Gaza residents killed since the beginning of the ceasefire reaches about 160," Hamas said in a statement published on its Telegram channel. The movement appealed to mediators to "immediately intervene and stop these crimes" by the Israeli side. According to the radicals, Israel's actions show that it "disregards the lives of the hostages" held in Gaza and "seeks to evade the ceasefire."

According to the Israel Defense Forces, the target of the drone strike in central Gaza was a group of three radicals spotted near Israeli troops trying to plant an explosive device in the ground. Two other militants also tried to plant explosives in the center of the enclave a few hours later and were hit by a drone, the military said.

On January 15, it was announced that Israel and Hamas had reached an agreement on the release of hostages held in Gaza and the establishment of a ceasefire in the enclave. The agreement, which includes three phases, went into effect on January 19. The first phase ended on Saturday, March 1. All 33 Israeli hostages to be released under the first phase of the agreement, including those who died, were returned to their homes. In return, Israel released more than 1,500 Palestinians from prison, some of whom were expelled from the Palestinian territories.