Hamas accepts ceasefire after intense fighting

GAZA, Palestinian Territory — Hamas and other militant groups said Tuesday they had accepted an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire to end two days of intense fighting with Israel that had pushed the sworn enemies to the brink of a new war.

The sudden announcement brought relief to a region that had been paralyzed by hundreds of Palestinian rocket attacks in southern Israel and scores of Israeli air strikes on targets in the Gaza Strip. But it did not address the deeper issues that pushed Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers toward their latest violence and left doubts about international efforts to forge a broader truce agreement.

Those efforts had appeared to be making progress as Israel allowed Qatar to deliver financial aid to the Hamas government, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that he wanted to avert an “unnecessary” war in Gaza. Hamas, in turn, scaled back its mass protests that have led to weekly bloodshed along the Israeli border.

But hours after Netanyahu spoke Sunday, an Israeli commando unit on an undercover mission was caught behind enemy lines in Gaza by Hamas militants.

Their discovery set off a battle that led to the deaths of seven militants and an Israeli officer, and triggered the heaviest barrage of rocket fire since a 2014 war. Seven Palestinians, including five militants, were killed.

But late Tuesday, Hamas and other mili- tary groups issued a joint statement saying they had accepted the ceasefire.

KHALIL HAMRA, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A woman looks out the window of her home after Israeli air strikes demolished Hamas’ Al-Aqsa TV station building in Gaza City. Amid the rubble, shops reopened, cars jammed the streets and crowds chanted the name of Hamas’ military wing after an Egyptianbrokered ceasefire took hold. Meanwhile, Israeli reconnaissance drones continued to buzz overhead.