Gaza ceasefire stalls
July 27, 2014
Lingering distrust appeared to shatter a last-minute ceasefire on Sunday, with reports of both the Gaza Strip and southern Israel being hit by rockets and bombs. Hamas' belated agreement to the truce did not appease Israel, whose military resumed operations, citing the continued bombardment of its southern territory.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told US broadcasters that Israel would continue to protect itself with or without a truce.
"They are violating their own ceasefire," Netanyahu told CNN on Sunday.
In a separate interview with television channel Fox News, he said: "Israel is not obliged and is not going to let a terrorist organization decide when it's convenient to fire at our cities, at our people, and when it's not."
Hamas cited Israel's "lack of commitment" in its decision to resume firing on southern Israel, according to the Associated Press news agency.
The Israeli government announced it would extend a ceasefire by 24 hours until midnight local time on Sunday (2100 UTC) at the request of the United Nations. However, Hamas waited until Sunday around noon to agree to the proposal.
The fighting has overshadowed preparations for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, which begins on Monday, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
Death toll surpasses 1,000
Since the launch of the Israeli offensive on July 8, Gaza has reported over 1,000 civilian deaths. The number of victims rose dramatically on Saturday, as the temporary ceasefire provided civilians the opportunity to search for bodies and pull them from the rubble.
As of Sunday, Israel had reported over 40 deaths, the vast majority of which were military personnel.
The Israeli military launched its campaign against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip nearly three weeks ago in order to stop a barrage of rocket attacks against southern Israel. It has also said that it is attempting to destroy a series of underground tunnels which allow militants to smuggle in goods and to leave Gaza.
The Israeli government has faced sharp criticism from abroad. Over the weekend, opponents to the military campaign took the streets across many European cities, including Paris and Berlin.
kms/dr (AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)