It had appeared that Israel and Hamas were headed toward a lessening of hostilities based on mutual gestures: less Hamas violence for easing of restrictions by Israel. But following the last spate of rocket fire from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory, Israel’s military said plans to extend the zone within which Palestinians are allowed to fish and permission to import a quantity of cement have been cancelled. Plans to increase the number of permits issued to Palestinians who work in Israel by 500 are also on “hold.” The perks offered to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip were only announced on Thursday as a response to a Hamas statement indicating it would suspend the use of balloons to ferry explosives across the border into Israeli territory. The latest tit-for-tat is illustrative of the way Islamist groups like Iranian-backed Hamas operate. Rather than enter into a formal agreement, the situation on the ground is determined by the real-time facts, the underlying principle being mutual implementation of each sides’ concessions generate an equal response from the other. Although it is frequently true that rockets fired into Israeli originate with Islamic Jihad or other groups rather than Hamas, Israel’s policy is that as the ruler of the Gaza Strip, Hamas is responsible for all acts of violence and aggression emanating from the enclave.