Israel and Hamas exchange salvos after ceasefire expires

The Israelis and Hamas have resumed their war in the Gaza Strip after the expiration of a 72-hour ceasefire.

Reuters reports that 18 rockets have been fired into Israel from Gaza since the end of the Egyptian brokered ceasefire. The Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted two of the rockets. As sirens wailed over Israeli cities warning people about the incoming rockets, Israeli warplanes dropped bombs on positions throughout the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian authorities say that the Israeli attacks killed a child near a mosque in Gaza City. The Israelis say that mortars fired from Gaza injured two people.

The Israeli authorities said that airstrikes would continue until the security of Israel was restored. They also said that they would not negotiate with Hamas about another ceasefire as long as they continued to fire rockets from the strip.

The major sticking point that led to the failure to extend the old ceasefire was Israel's refusal to end a naval and terrestrial blockade of the Gaza Strip. The blockade has made it impossible for Gazans to work or the economy to function. Hamas is also demanding the release of a number of political prisoners.

Israel has said that it cannot end the blockade because Hamas will simply use it to restock its arms and ammunition.

Thus far, Israeli troops have not entered the Gaza Strip. They had occupied the territory for weeks before the last ceasefire agreement was reached. That agreement was made possible after Israel said it had destroyed the entirety of an underground network of tunnels and bunkers used by Hamas to shelter and move weapons and personnel.

Since the violence first erupted, 1,876 Palestinians have been killed. The majority of these deaths have been civilians. Israel has lost 64 soldiers during its invasion and three civilians to rocket attacks.