DUBAI, December 1. /TASS/. The death toll in the Gaza Strip following the ceasefire termination has reached 66 after a girl was killed in the city of Khan Yunis as a result of an Israeli strike, the Al Jazeera television channel reported.
The Gaza health ministry said earlier that at least 32 Palestinians had been killed in Israeli strikes in a span of three hours after the end of the ceasefire. Dozens, mostly women and children, were wounded.
On November 22, Hamas announced an agreement with Israel, which was brokered by Egypt and Qatar, on a four-day humanitarian truce in the Gaza Strip. The ceasefire took effect at 7:00 a.m. local time (5:00 a.m. GMT) on November 24. The deal stipulated the release of Israeli women and children who held hostage in Gaza in exchange for the release of Palestinian women and children from Israeli prisons.
Israel said it was ready to extend the truce for an additional day in exchange for the release of ten more hostages and free 30 Palestinian prisoners every time. However, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on the morning of December 1 that Hamas had violated the truce in Gaza and opened fire at Israeli territory, thus prompting the IDF to resume combat operations in the Gaza Strip.