11 days of violence ended as Israel and Hamas agreed upon a mutual ceasefire with the intervention of Egypt. The ceasefire came into effect in the early hours of Friday, 21st May.
This was the worst conflict since 2014 in the Middle East.
Both Israel and Hamas will cease any military conflict, this truce assures. Both sides claimed that they wouldn’t recede if the other side violates the truce, while two delegations from Egypt will monitor the ceasefire.
This agreement was the result of pressure mounted from US President Joe Biden and other foreign leaders on the Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to terminate the violence that had cost hundreds of lives and ravaged buildings in Gaza. Netanyahu asserted “quiet in exchange for quiet”.
With the alleviation of hostilities, people celebrated in Gaza, where most of the damage happened from the airstrikes. This pause in fighting will give some relief and hopes to Palestinians and they would bring their lifestyle back to normal while allowing the US and the UN to provide support and aid in Gaza’s reconstruction.
The agreement has been called “unconditional” by both Israel and Hamas, but the information of the deal has not been made public yet and is likely to flow in over the next few days. Also, there’s no statement on easing the blockade on Gaza and the amount of time for which the pact will survive as yet.
The Times of Israel reported that, after hours of the ceasefire, infrequent rocket fire was still heard across Gaza and IDF said sirens alerted Israeli residents of Hamas rocket fire in the south of the country, though, no rockets have been reported fire from Gaza since the ceased officially came into force.
