Israel warn Hamas against further attacks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Gaza's militant Hamas rulers against further attacks following a ceasefire. In a speech hours after the truce took effect he said: "If Hamas thinks we will tolerate a drizzle of rockets, it is wrong."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned Gaza's militant Hamas rulers against any further rocket attacks following a ceasefire.
In a speech hours after the truce took effect on Friday, he said: "If Hamas thinks we will tolerate a drizzle of rockets, it is wrong."
He vowed to respond with "a new level of force against any expression of aggression against communities around Gaza and any other part of Israel."
Israel and Hamas fought an 11-day war, their fourth since the Islamic militant group seized power in Gaza from rival Palestinian forces in 2007.
Palestinians rallied in their thousands early on Friday after a ceasefire took effect in the latest Gaza conflict, with many viewing it as a costly but clear victory for the Islamic militant group Hamas over a far more powerful Israel.
The 11-day conflict left more than 200 dead, the vast majority Palestinians, and brought widespread devastation to the already impoverished Hamasruled Gaza Strip.
But the rocket barrages that brought life to a standstill in much of Israel were seen by many Palestinians as a bold response to perceived Israeli abuses in Jerusalem, the emotional heart of the conflict.
The truce faced an early test when clashes broke out between Palestinian protesters and Israeli police following Friday prayers at the Alaqsa Mosque compound, a flashpoint holy site in Jerusalem that is sacred to Jews and Muslims. It was unclear what sparked the violence.
Police fired stun grenades and tear gas, and Palestinians hurled rocks after hundreds had taken part in a celebratory demonstration in which they waved Palestinian and Hamas flags and cheered the militant group. Clashes between protesters and police at the site earlier this month were one of the main triggers for the war.
Thousands took to the streets of Gaza as the ceasefire took hold at 2am.
Young men waved Palestinian
and Hamas flags, passed out sweets, honked horns and set off fireworks.
Spontaneous celebrations also broke out in east Jerusalem and across the occupied West Bank.
The mood was more sombre in Israel, where prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced angry accusations from his right-wing base that he had halted the conflict too soon.
Like the three previous conflicts
between the bitter enemies, the latest round of fighting ended inconclusively. Israel claimed to have inflicted heavy damage on Hamas with hundreds of bruising airstrikes but once again was unable to halt the rockets.
Hamas also claimed victory, despite the horrifying toll it took on countless Palestinian families who lost loved ones, homes and businesses.
It now faces the daunting
challenge of rebuilding in a territory already suffering from high unemployment and a coronavirus outbreak.
The ceasefire was brokered by neighbouring Egypt after the US pressed Israel to wind down the offensive.
Mr Netanyahu announced that Israel had accepted the proposal late Thursday, while emphasising that "the reality on the ground will determine the future of the campaign".