May 14: A tense ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in Gaza appeared to hold Sunday morning, following brief rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip late in the night and retaliatory Israel Defense Forces airstrikes after the 10 p.m. truce went into effect.
The Egyptian-brokered ceasefire put a stop to five days of intense fighting that saw over 1,200 rockets launched at Israel, with the Israeli military responding by targeting Islamic Jihad members, command centers, rocket launchers and capabilities in the Palestinian enclave.
Late Saturday, rocket alerts sounded in southern and central Israel, leading the IDF to launch retaliatory strikes in the Gaza Strip that the military said targeted two underground rocket launchers belonging to Islamic Jihad.
The Home Front Command told residents of communities near the Strip to remain near bomb shelters overnight and announced that restrictions on movements and gatherings for those within 40 kilometers (25 miles) of Gaza would lift at noon on Sunday.
Roads near the border that were shut for fear of anti-tank guided missile attacks reopened at 6 a.m. Sunday, following military assessments. Restrictions on residents beyond 40 kilometers from Gaza lifted at the same time.
Home Front Command rules have mandated school closures, work closures — unless employees have a bomb-safe room they can reach in time — and limits to outdoor gatherings to no more than 10 people for those near the Palestinian enclave. Indoor gatherings were restricted to 100 people in those areas.
Additionally, special education schools were permitted to operate in areas near Gaza, provided there is a bomb-safe room that school kids and teachers can reach in time.
The announcement may be a precaution though, given that Gazan terror groups have violated ceasefires in the past. IDF officer Hadar Goldin was killed by Hamas and his body was dragged into a tunnel during the 2014 Gaza war unfolded shortly after a ceasefire was supposed to have gone in place.
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