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Fighting Resumes In Gaza, As Israeli Military Says Cease-Fire Is Over

Gaza City, located in the northern Gaza Strip, is seen shortly before the start of a proposed cease-fire Friday morning.
Lefteris Pitarakis
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AP
Gaza City, located in the northern Gaza Strip, is seen shortly before the start of a proposed cease-fire Friday morning.

It was negotiated as a three-day humanitarian cease-fire that was to start at 8 a.m. local time today.

But just hours in, fighting erupted again in Gaza.

Palestinian authorities told The Associated Press that at least 27 people were killed in Gaza after an Israeli tank opened fire. NPR's Emily Harris reports that Israel accused Hamas of continuing its rocket fire.

One Israeli official told Emily: "At this point, it's clear the Palestinians violated the cease-fire in three ways. They attacked us in Gaza, they sent rockets toward Israeli cities, and they fired mortar shells on the Kerem crossing."

Right before 2 p.m. local time, a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces, Peter Lerner, said the cease-fire was over.

With that, here's what you need to know as the conflict enters its 25th day:

-- An Israeli Soldier Captured

Lerner also tells NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson that as Israeli forces were working to decommission a tunnel, an Israeli soldier was "abducted by terrorists."

He said the IDF suspects that 2nd Lt. Hadar Goldin, 23, has been captured and added that the military is now carrying out extensive operations to locate the soldier.

"We are continuing our activities on the ground," Lerner said. "There is aircraft in the sky as we speak."

-- The Death Toll:

From the U.N., here's a breakdown of the death toll since the conflict started:

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.