Israel and Palestinian militants declare Gaza truce

8/8/2022 11:33

        Israel and Palestinian militants agreed to a Cairo-mediated truce to take effect late on Sunday, sources said, raising hopes of an end to the most serious flare-up on the Gaza frontier in more than a year.
        
        Israeli forces pounded Palestinian targets through the weekend, triggering longer-range rocket attacks against its cities.
        
        The latest clashes have echoed preludes to previous Gaza wars, though they have been relatively contained as Hamas, the governing Islamist group in the Gaza Strip and a more powerful force than Iranian-backed Islamic Jihad, has so far stayed out.
        
        Gaza officials said 41 Palestinians, almost half of them civilians and including children, had so far been killed. The rockets have threatened much of southern Israel and sent residents in cities including Tel Aviv and Ashkelon to shelters.