GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israel allowed dozens of trucks to deliver food, diapers and clothes to the Gaza Strip on Sunday, boosting the flow of basic goods as part of a 4-day-old truce with Hamas militants.
Further increases are expected if the quiet continues, offering the prospect of relief for Gazans after a year of Israeli sanctions against the Hamas regime.
The six-month deal is meant to end attacks that have killed more than 400 Palestinians and seven Israelis since Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip a year ago.
The truce has been holding since it began Thursday, evidence that both sides have an interest in the unsigned accord.
Hamas wants credit for ending the blockade and the legitimacy of reaching even an indirect agreement with Israel. Israel needs the halt in daily rocket attacks that disrupted the lives of thousands in the border area. Critics say it gives Hamas a chance to rearm.
On Sunday, 90 truckloads of supplies were transferred from Israeli to Palestinian vehicles at a Gaza crossing, up from between 60 and 70 before the truce went into effect, said military spokesman Gil Karie.
Hamas’ exiled leader, Khaled Mashaal, told reporters Sunday in Syria that the militant group was committed to the truce as long as Israel is.
