[caption id="attachment_108457" align="alignright" width="224"] Rescuers remove the body of a member of the al-Najar family found under the rubble of their home after a reported Israeli strike on Khan Yunis in Gaza Strip. Photograph: Said Khatib/AFP/Getty Images[/caption]
Israeli tank shells reportedly kill 18 members of one family shortly before truce begins and Palestinians pour into streets
A 12-hour humanitarian truce has begun after Israel and Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip agreed to a UN request for a pause in fighting as efforts continue to try to secure a long-term ceasefire.

The Gaza health ministry said 18 members of a single family were killed by Israeli tank shelling in the southern Gaza Strip shortly before the truce took effect at 8am (0500 GMT). An Israeli military spokeswoman said she was checking the report.

Israel's military said it would hold fire for 12 hours, but would press on with its search for tunnels used by militants. A spokesman for the Islamist group Hamas, which dominates Gaza, said all Palestinian factions would abide by the truce.

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