Israel and Islamic Jihad ceasefire in question after IDF responds to rocket attacks

A ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad is in question after the Israel Defense Forces said it is "attacking widely" in the Gaza Strip in response to militants' rocket fire after the ceasefire was scheduled to go into effect.

Egypt helped broker the ceasefire, which was scheduled to go into effect at 11:30 p.m. local time on Sunday. About ten minutes before the scheduled ceasefire, the IDF tweeted, as translated, "The IDF is now attacking the Gaza Strip."

Two minutes after the ceasefire was set to begin, the IDF tweeted that it is "now attacking widely in the Gaza Strip in response to the rocket fire."

The IDF launched operation "Breaking Dawn" on Friday as a series of airstrikes targeting militants and infrastructure of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza.

Top Jihadi leaders were taken out, including Taysir al-Jabari, one of the top two most senior commanders.

"Israel will not sit idly by when there are those who are trying to harm its civilians. This government has a zero tolerance policy for any attempted attacks — of any kind — from Gaza towards Israeli territory," Prime Minister Yair Lapid said in a press release.

Retired Brig. Gen. Meir Elran said most IDF goals have been accomplished.

"The way I see it is that most of our military goals have been achieved and I would add to that successfully achieved and at a very reasonable cost. The very important fact that we do not have any casualties is a very significant one but it is not only about casualties but also about other things like disruption of the routine, etc.," he said in a call with the Jerusalem Press Club.