Two rockets fired from Gaza hit Israel early Friday breaching a ceasefire agreement that held for more than two days. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) tweeted the news: “Moments ago, 2 rockets fired from Gaza hit southern Israel. Terrorists have violated the ceasefire.” One of the rockets hit Eshkol in the south of Israel, but there were no damages. The other rocket was intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome missile defence system over the town of Ashkelon. Hamas Spokesman Sami Abu Zurhi denied that Hamas had fired the two rockets and said that the Twitter allegations “are based on Israeli reports aimed at confusing the situation.”

Thirty minutes after the end of the ceasefire, five rockets were fired to Israel. Thousands of people in Palestine left their homes, unsure how the IDF would react.

On Thursday, negotiators in Cairo had scrambled to extend the Gaza ceasefire that ended at 8 a.m. Friday. Talks came to a standstill as differences between the two sides couldn’t be breached. One of the key requests being made by Hamas is for Israel to end border restrictions that limit the flow of people and goods into and out of Gaza. The blockade has been in force since 2007 and has created hardship in Gaza. On its part, Israel wants Hamas to give up its weapons in order to lift the blockade that was created in order to stop weapons from reaching Gaza.

A senior Hamas official told The Associated Press that the 72-hour ceasefire with Israel wouldn’t be extended because Israel had rejected Hamas’ conditions.

Israel had withdrawn its troops by the time the three-day truce began but it retained its forces along the border, ready to respond to any resumption of fighting.

Four weeks of military assault has claimed the lives of 1,890 Palestinians, mainly civilians with at least 429 children. Speaking in Jerusalem after a visit to Gaza, International Committee of the Red Cross President Peter Maurer said he was “deeply distressed and shocked”. He also suggested that there may have been violations of international law as hospitals and schools appeared to have been targeted.