Is It a Cease-Fire If You Don’t Cease Fire?

Israel called a four-hour humanitarian cease-fire Wednesday, and amid confusion over which areas the halt applied to shelled a market in Gaza. According to Palestinian authorities, 17 Palestinians were killed and 200 more were injured.

NPR reports on the confusing nature of the cease-fire, which came with caveats that may not have been clearly communicated or understood: “The Israel Defense Forces declared a four-hour humanitarian cease-fire on Wednesday. But the army said it did not apply where soldiers were already engaged and that residents who had evacuated should not return to those areas.”

Residents of Gaza have been under military siege for three weeks and reportedly jumped at the chance to do some shopping and replenish supplies.

Earlier Wednesday, Israel hit another U.N.-run school (it has happened before), killing some 20 people. The Israeli government has said repeatedly that it does not deliberately target civilians.

— Posted by Peter Z. Scheer