GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip –
A fragile ceasefire agreement to end nearly three days of fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza held until Monday morning, a sign the latest round of violence may have subsided.
The outbreak was the worst clash between Israeli and Gaza militant groups since Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers waged an 11-day war last year, adding to the destruction and misery that have plagued blockaded Gaza for years.
Since Friday, Israeli planes have struck targets in Gaza while the Iranian-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group fired hundreds of rockets at Israel.
During three days of fighting, 44 Palestinians were killed, including 15 children and four women, and 311 wounded, the Palestinian Health Ministry said. Islamic Jihad said 12 of the dead were militants and Israel said some of those killed were killed by misfired rockets.
Israel said on Monday that it was partially reopening the crossings into Gaza for humanitarian needs and would open them fully if calm remained. Fuel trucks were seen entering a cargo crossing for the first time since crossings with the strip were closed last week, triggering a fuel shortage that paralyzed Gaza’s only power plant on Saturday. The plant was scheduled to resume full operations later Monday. Gaza suffers from a chronic energy crisis.
The lives of hundreds of thousands of Israelis were interrupted during the violence. Security precautions imposed in recent days on residents of southern Israel were gradually lifted on Monday, the army said.
Both sides boasted of their successes. Speaking to reporters in Tehran on Sunday, Islamic Jihad leader Ziad al-Nakhalah said the militant group remained strong, despite losing two of its leaders. “This is a victory for Islamic Jihad,” he said.
Despite that claim, the group undoubtedly took a hit during Israel’s fierce offensive. Beyond losing the two leaders, he reduced his arsenal by firing hundreds of rockets without hitting a single Israeli, thanks to Israel’s missile defense system that shot down most of them. Its own rockets may have killed several Gazans, according to Israel.
The ceasefire agreement contained a promise that Egypt would work for the release of two senior Islamic Jihad detainees held by Israel, but there were no guarantees that this would happen. The weekend fighting would also complicate Islamic Jihad’s relations with Hamas.
A senior Israeli diplomatic official said the offensive had set Islamic Jihad’s capabilities back “decades.” The outbreak was “a successful counter-terrorism operation” because Israel achieved its goals in a short period of time. he said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the operation with the media.
The violence had threatened to escalate into another all-out war, but ended up being contained because Gaza’s ruling Hamas group stayed out, possibly fearing Israeli retaliation and the breaking of economic deals with Israel, including Israeli work permits for thousands of Gaza residents. to strengthen their control over the coastal strip.
Israel and Hamas have fought four wars since the group invaded the territory in 2007.
Israel launched its operation on Friday with an attack on an Islamic Jihad leader, saying there were “concrete threats” of an anti-tank missile attack on Israelis in response to the arrest last week of another senior Islamic Jihad member in the West Bank. . That arrest came after months of Israeli raids in the West Bank to detain suspects following a series of Palestinian attacks on Israel.
He killed another Islamic Jihad leader in an attack on Saturday.
Israel said some of the deaths during this round were caused by errant militant rocket fire, including an incident in the Jebaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza in which six Palestinians were killed on Saturday. On Sunday, a shell hit a house in the same area of Jebaliya, killing two men. The Palestinians blamed Israel, while Israel said it was investigating whether the area was hit by an errant rocket.
On Monday, in the occupied West Bank, Israeli troops demolished the homes of two Palestinians suspected of carrying out a deadly attack on Israelis in the town of Elad in May. The soldiers faced a violent protest during the operation, the army said.
The outbreak of violence in Gaza was a key test for Israel’s interim prime minister, Yair Lapid, who lacks experience leading military operations. Still, he unleashed the offensive less than three months before a general election in which he is campaigning to retain office.
US President Joe Biden said he welcomed the ceasefire between Israel and Gaza-based militants.
“During these last 72 hours, the United States has worked with officials from Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Egypt, Qatar, Jordan and others throughout the region to encourage a speedy resolution of the conflict,” he said in a statement on Sunday.
The UN Security Council was to hold an emergency meeting Monday on the violence. China, which holds the council’s presidency this month, scheduled the session in response to a request from the United Arab Emirates, which represents Arab nations on the council, as well as China, France, Ireland and Norway.
“We underscore our commitment to do everything possible to end the ongoing escalation, ensure the safety of the civilian population and follow up on the file on Palestinian prisoners,” said the UN Special Coordinator for the Peace Process in Middle East, Tor Wennesland, in a statement.
The Israeli military said militants in Gaza fired around 1,100 rockets into Israel, of which some 200 landed inside the Palestinian enclave. The army said its air defenses had intercepted 380 of them, including two fired at Jerusalem. The military did not specify what happened to the rest, but they likely fell in open areas or broke apart in midair.
Islamic Jihad has fewer fighters and sympathizers than Hamas, and little is known about its arsenal. Both groups call for the destruction of Israel, but have different priorities, with Hamas limited by the government’s demands.
Hamas had a strong incentive to avoid another war. Last year’s war between Israel and Hamas, one of four major conflicts, and several smaller battles over the past 15 years, have taken a staggering toll on the 2.3 million Palestinian residents of the impoverished territory.
Over the past year, Israel and Hamas have struck tacit deals based on trading calm for work permits and a slight relaxation of the border blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt when Hamas invaded the territory 15 years ago. Israel has issued 12,000 work permits to Gazan workers and has offered the possibility of another 2,000 permits.
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Goldenberg reported from Tel Aviv, Israel. Associated Press writer Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.