Gaza Ceasefire Holds as Israel Continues to Deny Deal

Smaller Gaza Faction Fires Mortar, No Injuries

The Israeli government is continuing to deny that any ceasefire is actually in place tonight, despite confirmation from Egyptian officials of a deal negotiated yesterday. Despite this, the ceasefire seems to be holding, with none of the major factions violating it.

Indeed, since the ceasefire reportedly took effect at midnight, only a single mortar shell came out of the Gaza Strip, and it didn’t cause any casualties. It is unclear who fired the shell, but it does not appear to have been any of the major groups.

That’s a surprisingly complete secession of fighting since yesterday, when Gaza factions fired nearly 100 rockets against southern Israel, and Israeli warplanes pounded the strip, killing four people.

Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya’alon called for Israel to cut all water and energy supplies to the Gaza Strip to “clarify” the ongoing dispute, while insisting Iran was entirely to blame for the fighting.

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.