The UN agency for Palestinian refugees hopes for an extension to the four-day truce that started on Friday, Al Jazeera reports.

“We do hope the truce is extended. We have been calling for this truce to transform into a longer-term humanitarian ceasefire,” UNRWA Global Director for Communications Juliette Touma told Al Jazeera.

Touma, who recently visited southern Gaza, described the area as a “ghost town”.

“Everything is closed in Gaza… the shops, the pharmacies. While humanitarian assistance is fundamentally critical, and life-saving of course, it is not going to be enough in the medium to longer term. What needs to happen is commercial supplies that need to come in support of the private sector so it [Gaza] can stand on its own feet.”