Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip announced an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire with Israel on Tuesday after a severe escalation of violence threatened to descend into full-blown war.

The groups, including Hamas, issued a joint statement saying they would abide by the ceasefire as long as Israel did the same. Israel had not commented on the announcement.

"Egypt's efforts have been able to achieve a ceasefire between the resistance and the Zionist enemy," the statement said.

"The resistance will respect this declaration as long as the Zionist enemy respects it."

The violent escalation between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza was the worst since a 2014 war.

Seven Palestinians were killed in Gaza over the course of some 24 hours as Israeli strikes targeted militants and flattened buildings while sending fireballs and plumes of smoke into the sky.

Sirens wailed in southern Israel and tens of thousands of residents took cover in shelters overnight as around 400 rockets and mortar rounds were fired from the Gaza Strip, wounding 27 people, including three severely.

The violence began on Sunday with a botched Israeli special forces operation inside the Gaza Strip that turned deadly and prompted Hamas to vow revenge.</s>Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman has announced he is resigning from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government in protest against a truce in Gaza.

Addressing reporters in Jerusalem on Wednesday, Lieberman said he deemed Tuesday's Egyptian-mediated ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza "a capitulation to terror".

"Despite the difference in opinion, I tried to stay a faithful member of the government for as long as possible … but it has failed," Lieberman said.

He said he also fiercely objected to Israel's allowing Qatar to deliver $15m in aid to Gaza last week.

"From my point of view there are two critical points that made it impossible for me to carry on; the $15m that went into the Gaza Strip taken in suitcases from Qatar ... what would happen with the money after it has gone across the border," the minister said.

"It went to the families of the terrorists who fought on the border with Israeli soldiers throwing grenades. These families are the first who are going to receive part of this $15m - in other words we are ... giving terrorists money," Lieberman added.

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"The second point is regarding the ceasefire ... I understand all of the reasons and all of the information [behind the decision], but I would not be able to look in the eyes of the people who are within the range of Hamas, who are taken prisoner by Hamas. Hamas has to understand that nobody should go close to the frontier."

'Political victory'

In a reaction on Wednesday, Hamas called Lieberman's resignation a "political victory for Gaza".

Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri said it marked "recognition of defeat and failure to confront the Palestinian resistance", adding that "Gaza's steadfastness sent a political shockwave" through Israel.

The resignation, which comes into effect 48 hours after Lieberman puts it in writing, significantly weakens Netanyahu's coalition government and could bring about early elections.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu will take over as defence minister on an interim basis.

Speaking to Al Jazeera from Tel Aviv, Akiva Eldar, senior columnist at Al-Monitor, said Lieberman's resignation did not come as a surprise.

"It was a matter of timing. The Israeli army, the chief of staff and the Shin Bet ... they all strongly supported the ceasefire and ending the closure on Gaza and allowing more goods in," Eldar said.

"[Lieberman] doesn't have partners in the military establishment ... they don't think that cracking down on Hamas will put Israel in a better position ... it will give Israel more problems in the international arena.



"Netanyahu just visited Oman, and we were playing in Abu Dhabi, so he [Netanyahu] is looking at the region and has to be careful not to cross certain red lines. Lieberman was a part of this ... so it is cheap politics," Eldar added.</s>Image copyright Reuters Image caption Avigdor Lieberman said Israel was doing "serious damage to national security in the long term"

Israel's defence minister has resigned over the cabinet's decision to accept a ceasefire ending two days of fighting with Palestinian militants in Gaza.

Avigdor Lieberman denounced the move as "surrendering to terror".

He said his right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu party would leave the ruling coalition, which could lead to an early election.

Eight people were killed on Monday and Tuesday as militants fired 460 rockets towards Israel and Israeli forces bombed 160 targets in Gaza.

The ceasefire was largely holding on Wednesday and schools and businesses in southern Israel reopened after no rocket attacks were reported overnight.

However, Israel's military said it had shot at and captured a Palestinian man who tried to breach the Israel-Gaza border fence while hurling grenades.

Palestinian health officials later said a fisherman had been killed by Israeli fire in northern Gaza. The Israeli military said soldiers had shot the man because he was advancing towards the border fence.

What happened in the latest flare-up?

The fighting - the most intense since the 50-day war in 2014 - began after an Israeli special forces undercover operation in Gaza was exposed on Sunday, triggering clashes that left seven Palestinian militants and one Israeli soldier dead.

Late on Monday, militants launched a barrage of rockets and mortars at Israel.

Image copyright AFP Image caption A Palestinian man working in Israel was killed in a rocket attack on a southern Israeli town

One of the rockets hit a block of flats in the town of Ashkelon, killing a Palestinian man who was working in Israel.

In response, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out what it called a wide-scale attack against targets belonging to the militant groups Hamas, which dominates Gaza, and Islamic Jihad.

The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said seven people were killed in the strikes. Five of the dead were said to be militants and the other two farmers.

Image copyright AFP Image caption Israel targeted a building that housed Hamas's Al-Aqsa TV channel

Hamas and other Palestinian factions announced on Tuesday afternoon that they had accepted an Egyptian-mediated ceasefire and would abide by it if Israel did.

Israel's security cabinet initially said only that it was ordering the military to continue its operations as required, but Mr Lieberman and another minister appeared to confirm it had agreed to accept a ceasefire when they denied supporting it.

Why did Mr Lieberman resign?

At a news conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday, the defence minister said the military response to the rocket fire had been "insufficient and inappropriate".

Image copyright AFP Image caption About 100 of the 460 rockets fired from Gaza were intercepted by Israel's air defence system

He added that the government was making a serious mistake by accepting a ceasefire with Hamas and other militant groups that Israel, the US, EU and UK have designated as terrorist organisations.

"We are buying quiet for the short term at the price of serious damage to national security in the long term" he warned.

Mr Lieberman revealed he had similarly opposed recent decisions to allow into Gaza fuel for the territory's power plant and $15m (£12m) in cash from Qatar intended to fund the salaries of unpaid civil servants in the Hamas-run government.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Sderot residents protested against the ceasefire agreement on Tuesday night

"I could not remain [in office] and still be able to look residents of the south in the eyes," he added.

Dozens of residents of Israeli border communities protested after the ceasefire announcement at what they called the "lack of action by the Israeli government" to deal with the threat of Palestinian rocket attacks.

Mr Lieberman also announced that Yisrael Beiteinu would leave the ruling coalition and called on other parties to agree on an early date for a general election, which is not due until November 2019.

How significant is the resignation?

By Yolande Knell, BBC News, Jerusalem

This announcement by Mr Lieberman was expected.

He has been calling for tough Israeli military action against Hamas and has opposed ongoing efforts by Egypt and the UN to secure a long-term ceasefire deal that would quieten the Israel-Gaza border.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces criticism in Israel for accepting a ceasefire

His hawkish stance as defence minister has often left him at odds with the military top brass.

But it plays out well with the voter base of his political party.

The decision to withdraw Yisrael Beiteinu from the coalition government weakens Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who now controls just 61 of 120 parliamentary seats.

However, an official close to Mr Netanyahu told the BBC it was "not necessary to go to elections in this sensitive security period". He added that the prime minister would now take over the defence ministry.

What has been the reaction?

Mr Netanyahu's office said he was holding consultations with ministers from his right-wing Likud party and other party leaders in effort to stabilise his coalition.

Earlier, the prime minister defended the ceasefire decision, saying that "in times of emergency, when making decisions crucial to security, the public can't always be privy to the considerations that must be hidden from the enemy".

"Our enemies begged for a ceasefire and they knew very well why," he added.

Opposition leader Tzipi Livni of the centre-left Zionist Union alliance demanded an early general election.

"The government of failure in security must go," she said. "No peace, no security - elections now that will lead to an emergency coalition headed by the Zionist Union. We will restore security and act for peace."

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said Mr Lieberman's resignation was "recognition of the defeat before the growing force of Palestinian resistance".</s>Palestinian resistance factions announce Egypt-brokered cease-fire with Israel in Gaza, Turkey's official Anadolu Agency reported Tuesday amid a major flare-up of violence.

Hamas and smaller armed groups announced the cease-fire in a joint statement late Tuesday.

The deal would end the heaviest round of fighting between Israel and Hamas since a 2014 war.</s>The Israeli defence minister, Avigdor Lieberman, has announced he is resigning from the conservative coalition government of the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, in protest at a Gaza truce.

Announcing his decision, which takes effect 48 hours after he puts it in writing, Lieberman called Tuesday’s Egyptian-mediated deal with the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas “a capitulation to terror”.

“What happened yesterday – the truce combined with the process with Hamas – is capitulating to terror. It has no other meaning,” Lieberman told journalists.

“What we’re doing now as a state is buying short-term quiet, with the price being severe long-term damage to national security.”

He added later: “We should agree on a date for elections as early as possible.”

Lieberman also said his party was leaving Netanyahu’s coalition, which leaves the premier with only a one-seat majority in parliament.

Elections are not due until November 2019, but Lieberman’s resignation increases the likelihood of an earlier vote.

Lieberman, a security hardliner, heads the rightwing Yisrael Beitenu party, which holds five seats in the 120-seat Knesset, or parliament.

Netanyahu has defended Tuesday’s ceasefire deal, which ended the most serious escalation between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza since a 2014 war.</s>Israeli Defence Minister, Avigdor Lieberman, announced on Wednesday that he was resigning from the conservative coalition government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The resignation was in protest at the ceasefire agreement the government endorsed with Gaza.

Mr Lieberman said his decision, takes effect 48 hours after he puts it in writing.

He described Tuesday’s Egyptian-mediated cease-fire deal with the Palestinian group Hamas as “a capitulation to terror”.

Israel had launched a series of blistering air strikes against targets in Gaza after Hamas militants persisted in launching rockets at targets in Israel.

The minister had earlier on Wednesday hinted at his impending resignation from the coalition government of Mr Netanyahu.</s>Israeli Defenсe Minister Avigdor Lieberman is rumored that she will announce her resignation in a press conference to be held on Wednesday afternoon.

According to unconfirmed reports, the minister opposes Netanyahu’s decision to agree to a ceasefire with Hamas.</s>Israel's hardline defense minister Avigdor Lieberman announced his resignation on Wednesday and called for snap elections after a row over a ceasefire with Gaza's rulers Hamas to end a two-day flare up in violence

"What happened yesterday -- the truce combined with the process with Hamas -- is capitulating to terror. It has no other meaning," Lieberman told journalists. "What we're doing now as a state is buying short-term quiet, with the price being severe long-term damage to national security."

A security cabinet meeting on Tuesday ended with a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office saying that ministers had unanimously agreed to the Egyptian-brokered ceasefire.

Lieberman's office then made a statement saying that his "alleged support for stopping the attacks in Gaza is fake news."

Four other ministers, including Education Minister Naftali Bennett of the far-right Jewish Home Party, also announced they had opposed the ceasefire.

Lieberman has also opposed Netanyahu's policy of allowing a Qatari cash infusion in the impoverished Gaza enclave.

Netanyahu has come under criticism from members of his right-wing government for his decision to allow Qatar to provide money to the Hamas-run Gaza Strip to pay for salaries and fuel to ease an electricity crisis.

Last week, Qatar delivered $15 million (€13.2 million) of cash in suitcases to the Gaza Strip. The payment was part of $90 million that Qatar has pledged to deliver to cover the salaries of thousands of employees in the Gaza Strip in the next six months.

Lieberman's exit means his Yisrael Beiteinu may leave the ruling coalition, an action that could prompt Netanyahu to call early elections. The departure of Yisrael Beiteinu's five seats in parliament would leave Netanyahu with a majority of just one seat in the 120-seat Knesset.

There has been recent speculation Netanyahu is planning to hold early elections, now slated for November 2019.

For now, Netanyahu will take over the defense portfolio,

Lieberman's move intends to get ahead of the prime minister and will likely rally right-wing Israeli's advocating for a harder line on Hamas. Despite being a hawk, the right-wing Jewish Home has criticized Lieberman for being too cautious.

Every evening at 1830 UTC, DW's editors send out a selection of the day's hard news and quality feature journalism. You can sign up to receive it directly here.</s>TEL AVIV - Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman announced his resignation Wednesday and called for early elections after a sharp disagreement over a Gaza ceasefire deal, throwing the government into turmoil.

Lieberman also said his party was quitting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition, leaving the premier with only a one-seat majority in parliament.

Elections are not due until November 2019, but Lieberman's resignation increases the likelihood of an earlier vote.

"What happened yesterday - the truce combined with the process with Hamas - is capitulating to terror," Lieberman told journalists in explaining his reasons for resigning. "What we're doing now as a state is buying short-term quiet, with the price being severe long-term damage to national security."

He added later: "We should agree on a date for elections as early as possible."

Netanyahu has defended Tuesday's ceasefire deal that ended the worst escalation between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza since a 2014 war. An official from Netanyahu's Likud party hit back at speculation that early elections would be called and said the prime minister would take charge of Lieberman's portfolio at least temporarily.

"There’s no obligation to go to an election in this time of security sensitivity," the official said on condition of anonymity.

Lieberman, a security hardliner, heads the right-wing Yisrael Beitenu party, which holds five seats in the 120-seat Knesset, or parliament. Before taking over as defence minister, he made a series of controversial statements, including one directed at Hamas leader Ismail Haniya.

Lieberman said he would give Haniya 48 hours to hand over two detained Israeli civilians and the bodies of soldiers killed in the 2014 war "or you're dead". He later backed off and said he was committed to "responsible, reasonable policy". The ceasefire held on Wednesday, but Netanyahu was seeking to combat criticism of the decision.

Beyond Lieberman's resignation, several hundred Israelis living near the border with Gaza protested on Tuesday night to call for further action against its Islamist rulers Hamas.

Netanyahu defended his strategy and said: "Our enemies begged for a ceasefire. In times of emergency, when making decisions crucial to security, the public can't always be privy to the considerations that must be hidden from the enemy," he said at a ceremony on Wednesday morning in honour of Israel's founding father David Ben-Gurion.

Hamas portrayed the ceasefire as a victory and thousands of residents of the blockaded enclave took to the streets late Tuesday to celebrate.

In a statement on Wednesday, Hamas called Lieberman's resignation a "victory for Gaza." The Egyptian-brokered truce was announced by Gaza militant groups, including Hamas, on Tuesday.

A diplomatic source familiar with the agreement said it involved returning to arrangements put in place following the 2014 war, but warned: "The situation remains very precarious and can blow up again. What we have seen in the past 48 hours was very dangerous and no efforts should be spared to avoid similar flare-ups."

The violence saw seven Gazans killed in 24 hours as Israeli strikes targeted militants and flattened buildings, sending fireballs and plumes of smoke into the sky. Sirens wailed in southern Israel as militants unleashed barrages of rocket and mortar fire, sending residents rushing to shelters.

Around 460 rockets and mortar rounds were fired at Israel, the most ever in such a brief time period, the army said. An anti-tank missile hit a bus near the Gaza border that Hamas says was being used by Israel's army. An Israeli soldier was severely wounded.

In all, some 27 Israelis were wounded, three of them severely. A Palestinian labourer from the occupied West Bank was killed when a rocket hit a building in the Israeli city of Ashkelon. Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman plunges the Israeli government into turmoil by announcing he is resigning over a ceasefire deal with Palestinian militants in Gaza that he describes as "capitulating to terror"</s>Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman abruptly resigned his post Wednesday in protest over a cease-fire reached with Gaza militants, in a move that rocked the Israeli political scene and seemed likely to bring about early elections.

Lieberman termed the cease-fire ending two days of intense fighting "surrender to terrorism," and said he could no longer serve a government that endorsed it. Lieberman had demanded a far stronger Israeli response to the most intense round of rocket fire against Israel since a 50-day war in 2014, but appeared to have been overruled by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

His resignation delivers a major blow to Netanyahu's coalition government and sparked immediate calls for early elections. Lieberman said he hoped that in the coming days a date would be set for a new vote. The opposition parties joined his call.

The government could technically survive without Lieberman's Yisrael Beiteinu faction. But with elections currently set for November 2019, it's unlikely to last that long in lame-duck form.

Lieberman's resignation will take effect in 48 hours and Netanyahu will take over on an interim basis.

Residents of southern Israel had greeted news of the cease-fire with anger as dozens of protesters in the rocket-battered town of Sderot chanted "Disgrace!" at what they saw as the government's capitulation to violence and its inability to provide them with safety.

Recent months have seen sporadic rocket attacks as well as militant infiltration attempts and a wave of incendiary kites that have destroyed Israeli crops.

Netanyahu presented the decision to step back from a full-blown conflict as a unified one made by his Security Cabinet and based on the military's recommendations. But Lieberman and Education Minister Naftali Bennett, another hard-line member of the Security Cabinet, later expressed reservations, saying they favored a stronger response.

Netanyahu defended his actions at a memorial ceremony for Israel' first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion.

"I see the big picture of Israeli security that I cannot share with the public," he said. "Our enemies begged for a cease-fire and they know well why. I cannot detail our plans for the future. We will dictate the time and circumstances that are right for Israel and are right for the security of our people."

"In times like these, leadership is not doing the easy thing. Leadership is doing the right thing, even if it is hard. Leadership is sometime facing criticism," he added.

The Israel-Gaza frontier remained quiet overnight. Palestinian militants had fired 460 rockets and mortars into Israel in a 24-hour period, while the Israeli military carried out airstrikes on 160 Gaza targets. Seven Palestinians, including five militants, were killed. In Israel, one person was killed in a rocket strike and three were critically wounded.

With air raid sirens wailing throughout southern Israel and the explosions of airstrikes thundering in Gaza, the two sides had appeared to be on the verge of their fourth war in a decade. Instead, Gaza's Hamas rulers abruptly announced a cease-fire and Israel's Security Cabinet ended a seven-hour discussion with an apparent decision to hold its fire.

The news was greeted with celebrations in Gaza, with Hamas declaring victory in the latest round of violence, which was triggered by a botched Israeli raid on Sunday that left seven Palestinian militants and a senior Israeli military officer dead.

Hamas has staged near-weekly border protests since March in an effort to lift the Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed after the Islamic militant group seized control of the coastal strip in 2007. The blockade has ravaged Gaza's economy, and Israel refuses to lift it unless Hamas disarms, a demand rejected by militant group, which is pledged to Israel's destruction.

Demonstrators each week have approach the border fence, throwing firebombs, grenades and burning tires at Israeli troops. Israeli snipers have killed about 170 people, most of them unarmed. Israel says it is defending its border against attackers, but it has come under heavy international criticism for shooting unarmed people.

Before Sunday's raid, Egyptian and U.N. mediators had made progress in reducing tensions. In recent days, Israel had allowed fuel shipments to increase the power supply in Gaza, which suffers from frequent blackouts, and agreed to additional Qatari assistance to allow Hamas to pay the salaries of its thousands of government workers.

The standoff has produced repeated rounds of violence in recent years, including indiscriminate Gaza rocket fire at Israeli towns and cities and punishing Israeli military offensives, but Hamas remains firmly in control.

"We are third-class citizens here in Sderot and the communities on the border with Gaza," complained David Maimon, a local resident. "It's a shame. Instead of helping us and letting us live quietly, they let us suffer."

The current round of violence began when an Israeli commando unit on an undercover mission was caught behind enemy lines in Gaza by Hamas militants, setting off a deadly battle late Sunday. Hamas and other militant groups responded with a wave of rocket attacks the following day.

The Israeli military said its jets struck several "key strategic" Hamas targets in response, including military compounds, rocket launching posts and part of its vast underground tunnel network. Also targeted were Hamas' TV station and a Gaza City building serving Hamas' military and intelligence forces that houses a munitions warehouse.
Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman announces his resignation with effect in 48 hours in response to the Egyptian-mediated ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.