An Italian journalist, three Palestinian bomb disposal experts and two others were killed Wednesday when unexploded weaponry erroneously detonated. 

The explosion occurred in Beit Lahiya, a town in northern Gaza that has been besieged by fighting between Hamas and Israeli soldiers during the most recent conflict. 

Another 72-hour ceasefire was put in effect Monday after the first one failed due to Hamas launching more rockets into Israel. The newest ceasefire has given Palestinians the chance to search for and diffuse unexploded munitions. 

Gaza officials said the three men killed were the head of a local bomb squad, his deputy and a police officer. They were killed when an Israeli shell suddenly blew up, Reuters reports. 

Federica Mogherini, Italy's foreign minister, offered the Italian government's condolences to the family of Simone Camilli, the Italian journalist who was killed in the explosion. She said his death underscores the urgent nature of needing to find a lasting solution to the bloody conflict in the Middle East. 

"Once again, a journalist pays the price for a war that has gone on for too long, and for the second time in a few months we weep for the death of someone who was courageously working as a reporter," Mogherini said in a statement, according to Reuters. 

Camilli, a video journalist, had worked for The Associated Press since 2005. 

Meanwhile, less than a day is left to broker a lasting solution to the conflict in Gaza and Israel. 

Indirect talks between Palestinian and Israeli officials will continue in Cairo Wednesday in an effort to negotiate a lasting truce to end hostilities, which have continued for more than one month. The three-day truce is expected to expire just after midnight local time on Wednesday. 

Egypt is urging Israelis and Palestinians to extend the ceasefire. 

"This is a very sensitive time in the negotiations, and it's hard to predict the outcome at this point," an Egyptian government official told CNN. 

The first ceasefire failed to stick after Hamas resumed violence against Israel. A lasting truce has not been able to stem the fighting, which has killed more than 2,000 people. 

Palestinians and Israelis are speaking through Egyptian officials. However, it is unclear whether the two sides can come to an agreement; Israel, in addition to the E.U. and the U.S., defines Hamas as a terrorist organization, while Hamas does not think Israel has a right to exist, and aims to kill Israeli citizens. 

Hamas, which is represented by a delegation comprising different Palestinian groups, is demanding that Israel ends its economic blockade on Gaza, reopens its airport and seaport, extends fishing rights on the coast and releases prisoners that are held by Israeli authorities. 

Israel says that it will not honor such a request until Hamas lays down its arms and Gaza is completely demilitarized. 

A senior Egyptian official would not confirm nor deny reports that Egypt submitted a proposal to extend the ceasefire, which includes easing the Gaza blockade. 

While Palestinians are under a great deal of pressure due to the high number of causalities and Israeli military capabilities, Israelis have been living in fear of rockets from Gaza, which are purposely aimed at civilians. They also face a threat of militant attacks from Gaza, as Hamas has used tunnels to infiltrate Israeli territory. 

Israel's sophisticated Iron Dome missile defense system has intercepted around 3,500 rockets that were launched from Gaza. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent ground troops into Gaza to destroy the tunnels, which intensified fighting but resulted in the successful destruction of the tunnels. 

About 1,962 Palestinians have been killed in the conflict, and 64 Israeli soldiers and three Israeli civilians have been killed. 

The IDF pulled its soldiers out of Gaza last week after they finished the demolition of the tunnels.