Until this latest war, if you asked most Israelis about the threat from Gaza, they would probably start talking about Hamas rockets.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged Hamas on Tuesday to pursue a negotiated end to its conflict with Israel after what he said were constructive talks with Egyptian officials about their cease-fire proposal.
The push for a Gaza ceasefire risks becoming mired in a regional tussle for influence between conservative Arab states and Islamist-friendly governments, with rival powers competing to take credit for a truce, analysts and some officials say.
As the situation becomes increasingly dire in the Gaza Strip, some are seeing the noticeable absence of vociferous support from the Arab world for beleaguered Gazans as a function of the Hamas-Muslim Brotherhood relationship.
Amid rumors that a cease-fire between Israel and the Islamist Hamas movement is close after ten days of Hamas rocket attacks and Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is coming under criticism in both the West Bank and Gaza for not speaking out more strongly against Israel during the fighting.
Hamas proposed its own 10-point plan for a cease-fire in hostilities with Israel.
President Barack Obama said on Wednesday he supports Egypt\’s attempt to reach a cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinians to head off more deadly clashes.
The Israeli military agreed to a humanitarian cease-fire to allow civilians in Gaza to resupply their households with basic necessities.
Israel’s foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, said Israel should retake the Gaza Strip in the current military operation.
Rockets fired from Gaza continued to land in populated areas of Israel after its security Cabinet accepted and put into effect an Egyptian proposal for a cease-fire.
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