TEL AVIV, August 1 (RIA Novosti) – Israeli army said five soldiers have been killed in shelling on the border with Gaza Strip late Thursday, shortly before US Secretary of State John Kerry announced a three-day ceasefire between Tel Aviv and Hamas.
“Israeli Defense Forces confirm that yesterday evening [Thursday, July 31] five servicemen died on the border with Gaza Strip when a mortar round was fired at them. Moreover, 19 servicemen were injured over the last 24 hours,” the army press statement said.
“I cannot say whether it will have any impact on the ceasefire that we announced,” a representative of the army press service told RIA Novosti.
Earlier today, US Secretary of State John Kerry announced that Israel and Hamas agreed on a 72-hour humanitarian pause that begins at 8:00 a.m. (05:00 GMT) on Friday and will be followed by another round of peace talks in Egypt.
Israel launched Operation Protective Edge to put an end to rocket fire from Gaza on July 8. On July 17, the Israeli Army switched to a ground assault largely aimed at locating and destroying rocket launchers and underground tunnels used by militants to smuggle arms and secretly enter Israeli territory. More than 1, 400 Palestinians and nearly 60 Israelis have been killed since the offensive began.
