This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/middle_east/7791100.stm

The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Hamas declares Israel truce over Hamas declares Israel truce over
(about 2 hours later)
The Islamist militant group Hamas says it has ended its six-month ceasefire with Israel in the Gaza Strip.The Islamist militant group Hamas says it has ended its six-month ceasefire with Israel in the Gaza Strip.
Hamas had earlier said it would not be renewing the truce when it expired at 0400 GMT on Friday. As the ceasefire expired at 0400 GMT, Hamas issued a statement blaming Israel which had not "respected" the truce.
Israel's foreign ministry spokesman said the militants, who control Gaza, "had chosen violence over truth".
The Egyptian-brokered deal began on 19 June but has been tested regularly by Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel and Israeli operations in Gaza.The Egyptian-brokered deal began on 19 June but has been tested regularly by Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel and Israeli operations in Gaza.
Israel said it would like to renew the truce, but Hamas said Israel failed to ease its blockade of Gaza. Hamas said Israel had failed to ease its blockade of Gaza.
Israeli officials insist they never made a commitment to do so. Israeli officials insist that there was no commitment to ease the siege, under which Israel has allowed little more than basic humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Both sides have accused the other or regularly infringing the truce. The UN's relief agency says the situation has created a "profound human dignity crisis".
Israel says the blockade - in place since Hamas took control of Gaza in June 2007 - is needed to isolate Hamas and stop it and other militants from firing rockets across the border at Israeli towns.
'Fierce retaliation'
In reality the truce collapsed long before it expired, amid mutual recriminations over who was to blame.
There has been an upsurge in violence in recent weeks, with Israel trading air strikes and small-scale incursions into Gaza, with rocket fire from Palestinian militants aimed at southern Israel.
Guide: Gaza under blockadeGaza voices: Life under blockadeGaza: Malnutrition and shortages
"The ceasefire is over and there won't be a renewal because the Zionist enemy has not respected its conditions," Hamas said in a statement carried on its website."The ceasefire is over and there won't be a renewal because the Zionist enemy has not respected its conditions," Hamas said in a statement carried on its website.
As the expiry of the ceasefire neared, both sides said they would respond to any attack from the other party but would not take the offensive.As the expiry of the ceasefire neared, both sides said they would respond to any attack from the other party but would not take the offensive.
"We issue a warning to the Zionist enemy: all attacks against the Gaza Strip or any new crime will trigger a large-scale confrontation and we will retaliate very fiercely," said the Hamas statement. "All attacks against the Gaza Strip or any new crime will trigger a large-scale confrontation and we will retaliate very fiercely," said the Hamas statement.
Speaking to Israel's Haaretz newspaper before the ceasefire was declared over by Hamas, Defence Minister Ehud Barak said the truce had been beneficial. The Israeli foreign ministry spokesman, Yigal Palmor, said Hamas had chosen "violence over truth and rocket-shooting over ceasefire".
"Of course the tahadiyeh (calm) was not a mistake," he told Haaretz. He said it showed that Hamas "does not have the best interest of Palestinians in mind".
"If the quiet continues, there will be quiet. If the calm breaks, we will operate." "We have said publicly on many occasions that we think the continuation of the ceasefire is in the best interests both of Israelis and of Palestinians."
However, there have been regular outbreaks of violence in recent weeks with Palestinian factions firing rockets at Israel from Gaza and Israel responding with airstrikes. The BBC's Arab affairs analyst Magdi Abdelhadi says the end of the truce comes at a critical moment for the Israelis and the Palestinians.
The Israelis are in the middle of an election campaign, and political turmoil on the Palestinian side is set to worsen amid intensified rivalry between Hamas and Fatah, which controls the West Bank.
Our correspondent says the best pragmatists on both sides can hope for is that the end of truce will not necessarily lead to a major outbreak of fighting.
Are you living in the area? What is your reaction to the end of the truce? Send in your comments by completing the form below.Are you living in the area? What is your reaction to the end of the truce? Send in your comments by completing the form below.
In most cases a selection of your comments will be published, displaying your name and location unless you state otherwise in the box below.In most cases a selection of your comments will be published, displaying your name and location unless you state otherwise in the box below.
Name
 Name