Scepticism about the effectiveness of the latest Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire effort proved sadly well-founded yesterday, when five Palestinians were killed and more than 20 were injured by Israeli troops.
The fatalities and injuries occurred during hours of fighting focused mainly at Rafah, on the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
Palestinian Authority leaders accused Israel of deliberately torpedoing the ceasefire hopes; Israeli leaders counter-charged that the PA was failing to prevent attacks on Israeli targets.
Despite the recriminations, a meeting of a joint security co-operation forum was still being scheduled for this morning.
Today marks the anniversary of a visit to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City by the then Israeli opposition leader, now Prime Minister, Mr Ariel Sharon, which was followed a day later by the eruption of the intifada.
But any hopes that ceasefire talks in Gaza on Wednesday would finally bring an end to the year of relentless violence - and enable the Americans to broaden support in the Arab world for their anti-terror coalition - were dashed in the early hours of yesterday morning.
Before dawn, the Israeli army sent tanks and bulldozers into Rafah refugee camp, to demolish several homes that army sources said were being used to provide cover for Palestinian weapons smuggling from across the adjacent border with Egypt.
The Israelis also said that a tunnel had been dug from beneath one of the buildings to a nearby army position, and used to plant a bomb that exploded there on Wednesday.
Gunmen from the Islamic militant group, Hamas, which claimed responsibility for the Wednesday bombing, were at the forefront of the fighting that ensued.
Of the three Palestinians killed, two were reported to be members of the organisation.
Thousands of locals marched at their funerals, later in the day, chanting calls for revenge.
Hours after the fighting had subsided, a fourth Palestinian, a teenager said by hospital sources to have been standing on a street corner with a friend, was shot dead by a tank-mounted machine-gun. Further north, another Palestinian was shot dead on an approach road to an Israeli settlement.
There was no immediate Israeli comment on the latter two deaths.
Mr Yasser Abed Rabbo, the Palestinian Authority's Minister of Information, who 24 hours earlier had been participating in the ceasefire talks at nearby Gaza airport with PA President, Mr Yasser Arafat, and the Israeli Foreign Minister, Mr Shimon Peres, issued a statement branding the Israelis "enemies of peace".
A spokesman for Mr Arafat blamed "the Israeli army and some people inside the Israeli government" for trying to destroy the ceasefire.
Israel has protested in recent weeks that its troops in the Rafah area, a highly sensitive zone given its proximity to the border, have come under frequent attack by Hamas and other factions.
They complain that Mr Arafat has failed to intervene.
Palestinian sources acknowledge the strength of Hamas and other militant groups in the area, where Mr Arafat's influence seems weak.