Israel says it's reopening the permitted fishing zone off the Gaza coast following a cease-fire deal with the territory's militant Hamas rulers, which ended the worst spate of fighting between the enemies since a 2014 war.

COGAT, the Israeli defense body responsible for Palestinian civilian affairs, said Israel would expand the Palestinian fishing zone to a maximum of 12 nautical miles on Friday to "prevent the deterioration in humanitarian conditions" in the blockaded Gaza Strip.

A truce, mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the U.N., restored quiet to the volatile border after a weekend escalation killed 25 Palestinians and four Israelis.

The cease-fire deal is believed to include economic aid measures to help ease the crippling Israeli-Egyptian blockade of the territory, imposed after Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007.