Update: Egypt lambasts Israel, Palestine for refusing cease-fire extension

Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs rebuked Israel and Palestinian factions on Friday for failing to come to terms on an extension of the 72-hour cease-fire that expired early this morning, reported the state-owned Middle East News Agency (MENA).

Delegations from both sides of the conflict had been meeting in Cairo since Wednesday to discuss a longer-term truce. The Israeli delegation left Cairo Friday afternoon after spending nine hours in discussions with state officials, reported the privately owned newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm (AMAY).

The ministry claimed the majority of the Palestinians’ demands and needs had been met. Only a few unresolved issues remained, which should have impelled both parties to accept an extension of the temporary cease-fire in order to finalize the negotiations, the statement argued.

Egypt renewed its calls for self-restraint in the ongoing crisis and for Israel to stop targeting civilians.

Earlier in the day, Mohamed Farid al-Touhamy, head of Egypt’s General Intelligence Services, met with members of the Palestinian delegation to discuss the results of Egyptian officials’ talks with Israel, according to MENA. The results of those talks have not yet been made public.

The Palestinian delegation includes Cairo-based Hamas leader Moussa Abu Marzouk, Palestinian Authority and Fatah movement representative Azzam al-Ahmed and Islamic al-Jihad movement representative Zeyad Nakhaleh.

Sources close to the negotiations told Al-Arabiya satellite channel that Israel insists on the disarmament of Hamas before committing to the Gaza reconstruction process. Hamas, however, still maintains that this demand is contradictory to its mission as an armed resistance movement, and says a full end to the siege on Gaza is the only solution for a complete cease-fire.

Israel resumed military operations in Gaza on Friday in retaliation against purported Hamas-fired rockets. A statement issued by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) accused Hamas of firing the rockets immediately upon the expiration of the three-day truce at 8 am on Friday morning.

However, a different militant group, Islamic al-Jihad, has claimed responsibility for the rockets.

The temporary truce was brokered by Egypt and the United States after Israel’s 29-day military operation on Gaza killed over 1,800 Palestinians, the majority of them civilians. Sixty-four Israeli soldiers and three civilians have been killed in the conflict. United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has accused Israel of committing war crimes in its deadly campaign, which has repeatedly targeted UN shelters.

The latest round of Israeli strikes has so far killed a 10-year-old child and injured at least 11 Palestinians, according to Gaza Health Ministry spokesperson Ashraf Qadoura.

Egyptian authorities announced the Rafah border crossing to Gaza would reopen to allow injured Palestinians to enter Egypt for medical treatment, MENA said. The crossing had been closed for the weekend.

In a statement issued Thursday night, the head of the Qassam Brigades — Hamas’ military wing — said his party would not accept a cease-fire deal unless the siege on Gaza was lifted.

“Anything else is deception and running around the sacrifices, the martyrs and the blood of the Palestinian people,” the statement said.

If a deal meeting Palestinian demands was not brokered, Israel would face choices “that are all difficult,” the statement continued, warning the IDF that it could be dragged into an “exhausting war.”