Israel puts ‘temporary hold’ on Gaza ground operation
ISRAEL: Senior Israeli ministers decided overnight to hold off from
launching a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip to give Egyptian-led truce
efforts a chance to work, a senior Israeli official said Tuesday.
“A decision was taken that for the time being there is a temporary
hold on the ground incursion to give diplomacy a chance to succeed,” he
told AFP following a late-night session of Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu's inner circle, the Forum of Nine.
“They discussed both the state of the diplomacy and the military
operation,” he said on condition of anonymity.
As an Egyptian ceasefire proposal appears to be emerging from
indirect negotiations in Cairo between Israel and a Hamas team, a stream
of top-level diplomats were expected to arrive in the region to throw
their weight behind efforts to end the violence which on Tuesday entered
its seventh day.
Arab ministers visit Gaza -Arab League
EGYPT: Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi accompanied by 10 Arab
foreign ministers crossed into Gaza from Egypt on Tuesday to show
support for the Palestinians, the league's Deputy Secretary General told
AFP.
“The main goal is to express Arab solidarity and support for the
steadfastness of the people and Gaza,” he said.
At least 112 Palestinians and three Israelis have been killed since
Israel launched air strikes against the Hamas-controlled territory last
Wednesday in a bid to stop militants firing rockets into the Jewish
state.
China backs calls for immediate ceasefire in Gaza
CHINA: China backed calls Tuesday for an immediate ceasefire in the
Gaza conflict and urged the UN Security Council and the international
community to bring peace to the region.
A statement by China's foreign ministry came as senior Israeli
ministers decided overnight to hold off from launching a ground invasion
of the Gaza Strip to give Egyptian-led truce efforts a chance to work.
Israel strikes Islamic bank
GAZA CITY: Three Palestinians were killed in two separate strikes in
Gaza on Tuesday morning, after a night of relative quiet, the ambulance
services spokesman said.
“Two citizens were martyred in two raids in the Mughraqa area, in
southern Gaza City, and a third was killed in Beit Lahiya,” Adham Abu
Selmiya said.
The Israeli military said it attacked about 100 targets in the
coastal strip during the night, using aircraft, warships and artillery.
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