A new 72-hour ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has held on Monday morning after days of tense negotiations in Egypt.

The truce was agreed in Cairo at midnight (21:00 GMT), and came after two days of renewed clashes following the end of the previous truce on Friday.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the announcement of the ceasefire and expressed “strong hope” that the truce could be “a starting point to address the underlying grievances on both sides”.

Israel continued air strikes on positions within Gaza and Hamas fired rockets into Israel in the minutes leading up to the truce, in a conflict that has claimed close to 2,000 lives, including nearly 500 Palestinian children.

Twenty Palestinians were killed, and two Israelis injured in clashes over the weekend before the truce could be agreed as Hamas said that they would not negotiate while Gaza was under siege and Israel said it would not negotiate while the country was under rocket attack.

Israel is pushing for Gaza to become a demilitarised zone, while Hamas wants Israel to end the seven year blockade of Gaza, which has made living conditions difficult for those living in the densely populated area.