Israel, Hamas Agree To 72-Hour-Truce As Gaza Death Toll Keeps Rising

Israel and Hamas agreed in the early hours of Friday to a 72-hour humanitarian ceasefire in their bloody conflict in the Gaza Strip, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon announced separately on Thursday.



The ceasefire will begin at 8 a.m. local time (0500 GMT) on Friday, Aug. 1, they said in a joint statement, which also noted that "forces on the ground will remain in place" while the truce is effective.



"We urge all parties to act with restraint until this humanitarian ceasefire begins, and to fully abide by their commitments during the ceasefire," said the two who have been quite engaged in facilitating a comprehensive truce deal, adding that "This ceasefire is critical to giving innocent civilians a much-needed reprieve from violence."