Jerusalem – Israel sees no need for another Gaza ceasefire, an Israeli official was quoted as saying on Monday, as tensions between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and Washington flared over U.S. mediation to end the almost three-week-old war.
Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
Fighting had subsided over the weekend, with the battered Palestinian enclave’s dominant Hamas Islamists endorsing a U.N. call for a 24-hour halt ahead of Monday’s Eid al-Fitr festival.
Yet Israel balked, having abandoned its own offer to extend a 12-hour truce from Saturday as Palestinian rocket launches persisted. Netanyahu’s security cabinet met into the early hours of Monday to debate proposals including for an escalation of the Gaza offensive in which almost 1,100 people have died.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visited the region last week to try to stem the bloodshed, his contacts with Hamas – which Washington formally shuns – facilitated by Egypt, Turkey, Qatar and Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Israel wants Egypt, which also borders the Gaza Strip and views Hamas as a security threat, to take the lead in curbing the Palestinian Islamists. It worries about Doha and Ankara championing Hamas demands to open up the blockaded territory.
A flurry of media leaks by unnamed Israeli officials damning a draft agreement attributed to Kerry as too accommodating of Hamas was challenged by a U.S. official who, also anonymously, told reporters the top diplomat’s efforts had been mischaracterized.
But U.S. President Barack Obama, phoning Netanyahu on Sunday, put pressure on Israel to hold fire unconditionally and appeared to link its core demand for Hamas to be stripped of cross-border rockets and infiltration tunnels to a peace accord with the Palestinians that is nowhere on the diplomatic horizon.
“The President stressed the U.S. view that, ultimately, any lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must ensure the disarmament of terrorist groups and the demilitarization of Gaza,” the White House said.
It added that while Obama wanted any truce to be along the lines of an Egyptian deal that ended the last Gaza war, in November 2012, the United States also supported “regional and international coordination to end hostilities”.
Israel did not immediately respond nor publish what, if anything, was decided at the overnight security cabinet session.
But Israel Radio quoted an unidentified government official as saying: “There is no need for any more ceasefires. Let Hamas stop firing first.”
A poll published by Israel’s Channel 10 television on Sunday said some 87 percent of respondents wanted Israel to continue the operation until Hamas was toppled. Another poll, published in the Jerusalem Post newspaper, found that 86.5 percent of Israel’s majority Jews opposed calling a truce while rocket fire continued and Gaza retained any of the cross-border tunnels.
Israel says the Palestinians have lost around half of their rockets during the fighting – an account disputed by Hamas – and that army engineers have located and destroyed most of the tunnels from the territory. Those excavations will continue under any short-term truce, Israel says.
CEASE FIRE means to cease/stop FIRING ROCKETS at ISRAELI CIVILIANS
Obama put pressure on Israel to hold fire unconditionally. Does he even realize that Israel has done this numerous times, only to return to battle when Hamas disobeys the one rule of these ceasefires-by firing rockets at Israel-and it is Hamas who refuses to even sit down to talk until “the infidel occupiers” completely move away? The fact that public opinion legitimizes Hamas to any degree is a sure sign that everything happening, including Obama’s pressure, is nothing more than HKB”H pulling strings. May these be the final chevley moshiach.
87 percent want the war to be continued, until Hamas is toppled… The aforementioned statistic polled by Jerusalem post, is yet another corroboration that the israelis don’t understand the fundamental idea of what the Hamas militants are. The war can continue but they cant be toppled. They are a terrorist group and their essence is one of violence, they will never succumb, and does not view civilians as a loss. If they weaken them on one way they will strengthen themselves on a different way… Again all the young soldiers who died, Unfortunately died for a lost case.
Was intrigued by a particular phrase in Tehillim (Psalms) chapter 83. Aside from mentioning the Ishmaelites, it uses the words v’yachperu v’yovadu, they will dig (tunnels) and be destroyed. May the IDF see success in wiping out this evil.
The above picture shows the greatness of the simple Jews in Israel. The father is wearing jeans and a t-shirt to his son’s levaya. They have no thoughts of gashmiyus or luxury or fancy clothes. No desire to impress anybody. Just want to live simply in Eretz Yisrael.
“Another poll, published in the Jerusalem Post newspaper, found that 86.5 percent of Israel’s majority Jews opposed calling a truce while rocket fire continued”
Is this a joke?
How can anyone thing a “truce” can happen with one side still attacking the other?
Insane.
Reply to 2. Unfortunately Obama struggles to overcome his own anti Israel tendencies to align with American tradition
how will Obama demilitarize Gaza? is he willing to send us troops to aid Israel to finish the job earlier? if not , then he should keep quiet and let Israel finish the job once and for all!! After all , what would Obama preach if the US had continuous rocket attack from a sworn enemy bound for their destruction?? He would definitely would not preach “ceasefire”! He would order the US army to wipe the enemy and its weaponry from the face of this earth!!!!! So put yourself in Israel’s shoes and stop criticizing…….