First Israel's Iron Dome air defense system protected millions from rocket attacks. Now the state is assembling a "legal Iron Dome" to defend itself against potential allegations of war crimes in Gaza.

For Israel, the threat of another fight -- not on the battlefield but in the courts -- materialized on Monday with the appointment of a U.N. committee to investigate "all violations of international human rights and humanitarian law" in the occupied Palestinian territories since mid-June.

Police arrested 52 Palestinians in east Jerusalem overnight, taking to more than 600 the number of alleged rioters seized since unrest erupted early July over the hate killing of a Palestinian teen.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told AFP on Thursday that more arrests were expected.

Israel secured supplies of ammunition from the Pentagon last month without the approval of the White House or the State Department, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon David Hale announced on Thursday that his country will deliver an urgent aid to the Lebanese army within the upcoming few weeks which will continue in the months to follow.

“This assistance will enhance the LAF’s ability to secure Lebanon’s borders, protect Lebanon’s people, and fight these violent extremist groups,” Hale said after talks with Prime Minister Tammam Salam and Defense Minister Samir Moqbel at the Grand Serail.

Millions in Gaza and southern Israel on Thursday enjoyed a welcome extension to a temporary truce despite a rocky start which saw a flurry of rocket fire and air strikes.

Negotiators in Cairo brokered an 11th-hour extension to an existing truce by another five days to allow for continued negotiations on a long-term ceasefire in a conflict which has killed 1,962 Palestinians and 67 people on the Israeli side since July 8.

Hizbullah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah is expected to make a televised speech on Friday to commemorate the end of July 2006 war with Israel.

Nasrallah will reportedly address the party's supporters at 8:30 on Friday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed out Wednesday at the U.N. Human Rights Council, accusing it of granting "legitimacy to terror organizations" by investigating Israel for alleged war crimes in Gaza.

"UNHRC gives legitimacy to murderous terror organizations like Hamas and Daash (Islamic State)," he said, accusing the rights body of overlooking "massacres" committed elsewhere in the Middle East in favor of investigating Israel for defending itself against rocket attacks from Gaza.

Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah stated that there are “no red lines” in the “security war” with Israel, reported al-Akhbar newspaper.

He told the daily in excerpts released on Wednesday: “Hamas was not serious in its call on Hizbullah for assistance in the Palestinian Gaza Strip.”

A 72-hour truce between Israel and Hamas teetered on the brink of collapse Wednesday with a rocket hitting the Jewish state just hours before it expired at midnight.

Shortly before the rocket hit, an official told Agence France Presse Israel was willing to extend the lull by another three days as the Palestinians expressed hope they could reach a deal in indirect talks brokered by Egypt.

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat noted on Wednesday the sacrifices of the Islamic and national resistance throughout the years in its efforts to liberate Lebanon from Israeli occupation.

He said in a statement on the anniversary of the end of the July 2006 war: “No matter what the internal circumstances and Lebanese divisions over major and minor issues are, we should derive lessons from the July war that brought national solidarity with the residents of the South and the resistance.”