Hamas attack that killed Goldin may not have breached August truce

Hamas may not have agreed to allow Israeli forces to continue destroying tunnels in the Gaza Strip as part of an August 1 72-hour ceasefire that broke down after a Hamas contingent attacked, killed and attempted to kidnap IDF soldiers near Rafah.

During the attack, which left three soldiers dead, the gunmen made off with the body of Lt. Hadar Goldin. Believing Goldin had been captured alive, the army responded with massive force in an effort to thwart his abductors, leaving over 100 dead in two days as the ceasefire crumbled.

The US, Israel and the UN immediately issued statements condemning the Hamas breach of the ceasefire, but the organization’s political leader, Khaled Mashaal, insisted that Hamas had not violated the agreement or ever agreed to halt attacks against against IDF forces inside of Gaza.

Army Radio reported on Tuesday that officials in the Israeli government confirmed that despite US promises to the contrary, Mashaal never agreed to that condition.

“We demanded from the Americans two things: a ceasefire and freedom to deal with the tunnels without the threat of attacks by Hamas,” one source said. “We demanded a written document, that Hamas accepts the terms and so it was, as well as in media announcements.”

Indeed, US Secretary of State John Kerry said in an initial statement announcing the ceasefire that “during this time forces on the ground will remain in place.”

He also later told reporters that “Israel will be able to continue its defensive operations for those tunnels that are behind its lines, and the Palestinians will be able to receive food, medicine and additional humanitarian assistance as well as to be able to tend to their wounded.”