US, UN announce deal on 72-hr Gaza truce

Israel and Hamas have agreed to a 72-hour humanitarian ceasefire to begin on Friday morning, the United Nations and United States announced, although Secretary of State John Kerry cautioned there were ‘no guarantees’ the lull in violence would bring an end to the 24-day-old Gaza war. The surprise announcement came hours after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to destroy Hamas’ tunnel network ‘with or without a ceasefire’ and as the Palestinian death toll soared past 1,400. Noting the difficulties that lay ahead, Kerry said: ‘This is not a time for congratulations or joy or anything except a serious determination — a focus by everybody to try to figure out the road ahead. This is a respite. It is a moment of opportunity, not an end.’ At least four short humanitarian ceasefires have been announced since the conflict began on July 7, but each has been broken within a few hours by renewed fighting, according to AP.