Hamas denies involvement in explosion that wounded ‘Israeli’ officer

• Hamas denied involvement in the Rafah explosion that wounded an ‘Israeli’ officer, asserting the blast occurred in a restricted zone under full ‘Israeli’ control and resulted from "remnants of war" planted prior to the October 10 ceasefire.
• Prime Minister Netanyahu vowed a response, calling the incident a "violation of the ceasefire," while the ‘Israeli’ military investigates whether the device was recently planted or was a legacy explosive from earlier operations.

Hamas issued a statement on Wednesday addressing a recent explosion in Gaza’s Rafah that wounded an ‘Israeli’ officer, distancing itself from the incident and saying it as a consequence of unexploded ordnance left behind by ‘Israeli’ forces.

Earlier today, the ‘Israeli’ military said an officer was wounded in Rafah from a bomb and added that it was investigating whether it was recently planted in the area or if it was an old explosive device from before the ceasefire.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahyu vowed that ‘Israel’ will respond, claiming that the explosion was a “violation of the ceasefire” by Hamas.

Hamas said that the site of the blast is situated within a zone currently under the total control of ‘Israeli’ military forces.

The area in question is entirely restricted, and "no Palestinian is working there,” according to the statement, adding that it previously warned of the dangers of “remnants of war” littered through the area, particularly the ones "planted by the occupation itself" prior to the implementation of the truce on October 10.