U.S. President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Iran had agreed to a “complete and total ceasefire” soon after Iran launched a limited missile attack Monday on a U.S. military base in Qatar, retaliating for the American bombing of its nuclear sites.
But the status of a possible ceasefire remained tentative after an Iranian missile barrage struck Israel after a first deadline for the proposal.
The Iranian barrages sent Israelis hurrying into bomb shelters as the sun rose, killing at least four people and injuring eight others, Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue services said.
Israel has yet to acknowledge Trump’s proposal, which gives Israel more time to potentially strike back though Iran on its state television announced an overall ceasefire had begun at 7:30 a.m. local time.
In Beersheba, first responders said they retrieved four bodies from one building and were searching for more.
The streets around the impact site were littered with glass and debris, windows were blown out of buildings as anxious neighbours stood outside their damaged houses. Three people were rescued from nearby buildings.
The direct hit in the largest city in southern Israel came just days after the city’s hospital sustained significant damage in a missile strike. [AP]
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