Armed Palestinian groups in the Gaza Strip are observing a 24-hour halt to rocket fire against Israel at the request of Egyptian mediators, a senior official of Hamas said on Monday. According to Reuters, Ayman Taha said the brief ceasefire went into effect on Sunday evening. He conveyed Hamas might consider a longer truce if Israel were to reciprocate by ceasing all military attacks in Gaza Strip and lifting the embargo on the coastal territory.
"Hamas and other factions agreed in order to give a chance to the Egyptian mediation and to show that the problem was always on the Israeli side," Taha told Reuters. "If a new (truce) offer were made, which met our demands, then we would be willing to study it."
Taha said any Israeli escalation would be met by Palestinian retaliation including suicide bombings inside the Jewish state.
