Israel, Hamas at odds over Gaza truce extension
As ceasefire comes to an end mixed messages come from Israel and Hamas over the future of the Gaza conflict, which has claimed 1,886 Palestinian and 67 Israeli lives
Israel and Hamas appeared at odds on Thursday over prolonging a 72-hour ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, with the Jewish state indicating it will back an unconditional extension but Hamas denying any agreement.
Guns have stayed silent in the tiny Palestinian enclave since 8am local time on Tuesday, bringing relief to millions of people on both sides after the deaths of 1,886 Palestinians and 67 on the Israeli side.
Egyptian mediators have accelerated efforts to extend the truce after it expires at 8am, local time, on Friday, shuttling between Israeli and Palestinian delegations in Cairo.
“I think it was justified. I think it was proportionate.”
“Israel has no problem extending the ceasefire unconditionally,” an Israeli official told the media on condition of anonymity late on Wednesday. There was no immediate reaction from Hamas.
A spokeswoman for the Israeli army said 27,000 reservists called up for the conflict had been sent home, leaving a force of 55,000 still on active duty, in another sign of growing hopes for long-term quiet.
But Hamas deputy leader Moussa Abu Marzouk, part of the Palestinian delegation holding talks in Cairo, denied overnight there was yet any agreement.
“There is no agreement to extend the ceasefire,” he wrote on Twitter.