GAZA CITY — On the first Friday since Israel ended its 22-day offensive in the Gaza Strip, some Palestinians gathered for weekly mass devotions by spreading prayer rugs on the streets outside the wreckage of mosques devastated by missile strikes.
Among those not making a public appearance, however, was the top local political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh. Rumors had been rife that Haniyeh, an Islamic religious scholar, would emerge from weeks of hiding to deliver a sermon.
But Haniyeh and former Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar remained underground, following the advice of their security details, officials said. Despite the unilateral cease-fire declared by Israel that took effect Sunday, the militant group is still wary of assassination strikes, said an official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"We don't trust the Israelis; there are no guarantees. The war is not over yet," the official said.
As thousands participated in noon prayers, international organizations continued emergency relief efforts for the seaside enclave.
John Holmes, humanitarian affairs chief for the United Nations, told reporters that Israel was allowing 120 truckloads of food and medical supplies a day to enter Gaza. Holmes praised the "spirit of goodwill" shown by the Israeli government, saying the level of cooperation was far greater than in the weeks before the offensive began with airstrikes on Dec. 27.
The three-week operation, aimed at ending years of rocket fire into southern Israel from Hamas and other Palestinian groups, resulted in the deaths of 1,285 Palestinians, more than two-thirds of them civilians, according to the Palestinian Center for Human Rights. Infrastructure damages and economic losses total nearly $2 billion, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics.
Thirteen Israelis were killed: three civilians from Gazan rocket strikes and 10 soldiers, several of them from "friendly fire."
Israeli officials continue to hail the Gaza operation as a success, saying they had heavily damaged Hamas' ability to fire rockets and delivered a painful lesson on the price of continued attacks. Among the buildings demolished were mosques where Hamas fighters and leaders were hiding or launching rockets, Israeli officials have said.
