Israeli troops withdrawing from Gaza

Israeli ground forces have started withdrawing from Gaza as an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire came into effect on Tuesday morning, Israel’s military spokesman said in Tel Aviv. ‘The Israel Defence Forces will be redeployed in defensive positions outside the Gaza Strip and we will maintain those defensive positions,’ Lieutenant-Colonel Peter Lerner told reporters. Te 72-hour humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza Strip brokered by Egypt came into effect at 8:00am local time (0500 GMT) on Tuesday. Just minutes beforehand, air raid sirens sounded in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv as Hamas militants fired a barrage of rockets at central Israel, AFP correspondents said. Similarly, in Gaza, following the quietest night since the operation began on July 8, the Israeli air force staged at least five raids shortly before the truce began. The 4-week conflict left about 2000 killed and several thousands injured, report agencies.