Gaza Ceasefire Ends, But Peace Talks Continue

No Deal on Extension of 72-Hour Ceasefire

The 72-hour ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip has come to an end, with the first rocket fired out of the strip intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome missiles, causing no damage.

Efforts to reach an agreement on the extension of the ceasefire were ultimately not successful, with Hamas pushing for Israel to agree on some basic principles of the framework for the final agreement as a sign of progress.

The end of the ceasefire has not so far meant the end of the peace talks, and both Israeli and Palestinian delegations remain in Cairo, trying to hammer out some sort of deal, but making no real progress so far.

It remains to be seen if the Gaza War will re-escalate to the levels before the past 72-hours. This could easily wreck the Cairo negotiations and put the whole situation back at square one, with another opportunity missed.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.