Palestinian leaders in the Gaza Strip agreed a ceasefire with Israel on Monday to end the deadliest fighting between the two sides since a 2014 war, officials with knowledge of the deal said.
There was no official ceasefire announcement from either side, but the intense fighting over the past two days appeared to come to a sudden halt in the early morning hours and residents on both sides went back to their daily routines.
In Gaza, Hamas' Al-Aqsa radio station had a short item saying a ceasefire had been reached. However, neither the strip's Hamas rulers nor the smaller Islamic Jihad group issued any formal announcement.
The Israeli military lifted protective restrictions on residents in southern Israel. In announcing its decision, the Israeli military said that as of 7 a.m., "all protective restrictions in the home front will be lifted."
Schools and roads had been closed, and residents had been encouraged to remain indoors and near bomb shelters as intense rocket fire pounded the area, threatening to devolve into all-out war.
Egypt brokered the agreement to cease hostilities from 4:30 am, a Hamas official and another from Islamic Jihad said on condition of anonymity.
An Egyptian official, who refused to be identified, also confirmed the deal.
The escalation began Saturday with massive rocket fire from Gaza, drawing waves of Israeli retaliatory strikes, and continued throughout Sunday.
At least 23 Palestinians, including at least nine militants, were killed, according to Palestinian medical officials.
Four civilians in Israel were killed, at least three of them Israeli citizens. They were the first Israeli fatalities from rocket attacks since the 50-day war in 2014.
