President Donald Trump defended Israel’s strikes in Gaza, saying it was justified in doing so, as ceasefire shows signs of fraying.

"They took out and killed an Israeli soldier," Trump said of Hamas militants.

Trump, currently on a trip to Asia, said Israel was justified in carrying the out the strikes after what he said was an incident in which Hamas killed an Israeli soldier during an exchange of gunfire in Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza.

Hamas denied any involvement in that deadly shooting and in turn accused Israel of violating the ceasefire deal.

Trump told journalists aboard Air Force One on Wednesday that Israel "should hit back" when its troops come under attack.

But he said he's still confident the ceasefire, which started on Oct. 10, would withstand the escalation in violence because "Hamas is a very small part of the overall Middle East peace. And they have to behave."

If not, they will be "terminated," Trump added.

His remarks come as the Israeli military said the ceasefire was back in effect after it carried out heavy airstrikes across Gaza.

It said Israeli forces would continue to uphold the ceasefire agreement but would respond firmly” to any violation of the deal.

The death toll in Gaza from overnight Israeli strikes has climbed to 81, hospital officials said Wednesday.