Associated Press By MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH and TIA GOLDENBERG
4 minutes ago

CAIRO (AP) — Israel and Hamas agreed to extend a temporary cease-fire for five days, Egyptian and Palestinian officials said Wednesday, potentially averting renewed violence and permitting the sides to continue to negotiate a substantive deal to end the war in Gaza.

Egyptian mediators had been racing to pin down a long-term cease-fire as a temporary truce was set to expire at midnight. The Israeli military said five rockets were launched at Israel in the hours leading up to the end of the cease-fire.

Egypt's foreign ministry and the head of the Palestinian negotiating team announced the extension. A spokesman for Israel's prime minister had no immediate comment.

The cease-fire extension is meant to grant both sides additional time to negotiate a longer-term truce and a roadmap for the coastal territory.

The lull in violence has also been a welcome reprieve for Israelis and Palestinians living in Gaza. During the temporary cease-fire, Israel halted military operations in the war-battered coastal territory and Gaza militants stopped firing rockets, aside from the ones late Wednesday.

"We have agreed on a cease-fire for five days," said Azzam al-Ahmad, the head of the Palestinian delegation to the Cairo talks. He noted that there had been "significant progress" but that disagreements remained over the wording regarding security arrangements, reconstruction efforts for the Gaza Strip and the permissible fishing area.