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JERUSALEM (Reuters) – A temporary truce between Israel and Gaza’s Hamas militants that was due to end at 7 a.m. (0500 GMT) on Friday has expired, with neither side announcing a deal to extend it.
In the hour before the truce was set to end, Israel said it intercepted a rocket fired from Gaza and Hamas-affiliated media reported sounds of explosions and gunfire in the Palestinian enclave.
The seven-day pause, which began on Nov. 24 and was extended twice, had allowed for the exchange of dozens of hostages held in Gaza for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and facilitated the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave.
(Writing by Rami Ayyub; Editing by Lincoln Feast)