Israel, Hamas at odds over truce extension

Israel and Hamas appeared at odds on Thursday over prolonging the 72-hour humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, with Tel Aviv indicating it will back an unconditional extension but Islamists Hamas denying any agreement. Guns have stayed silent in Gaza Strip since 8:00 am (0500 GMT) on Tuesday, bringing relief to millions of people on both sides after the deaths of 1,886 Palestinians and 67 Israelis in the four-week-long violence. Egyptian mediators have accelerated efforts to extend the truce after it expires at 0500 GMT on Friday, shuttling between Israeli and Palestinian delegations in Cairo. Israeli army spokeswoman said 27,000 reservists called up for the conflict had been sent home, leaving a force of 55,000 still on active duty, in another sign of growing hopes for long-term quiet. But Mussa Abu Marzuq, a leader of the militant outfit Hamas and deputy leader of the Palestinian delegation holding talks in Cairo, denied overnight there was yet any agreement. ‘There is no agreement to extend the ceasefire,’ he wrote on Twitter. ‘Any news about the extension of the truce is unfounded,’ added Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, according to a news agency.