There Are Glimmers of Hope for an End to the Israel-Gaza Conflict
There are signs, however small, that an end to the most recent conflict between Israel and Gaza is coming to a close. We're on day four of the latest conflict between Israel and Gaza, and things are looking bleak. The two countries exchanged rocket fire on Saturday, with Israel destroying the house of Gaza's Prime Minister. The death toll has climbed to 45 people between both sides.
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Egyptian President Mohammad Morsi is working with both sides to try and knock out a new ceasefire deal. Egypt was the last country to convince Israel and Gaza to stop fighting, but that was before Morsi came to power. Regardless, he says a deal might be reached soon.
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"There are some indications that there is a possibility of a ceasefire soon, but we do not yet have firm guarantees," Morsi said at a press conference on Saturday. "We are striving with all seriousness to stop this aggression, to reach a ceasefire. We call on everyone to adhere to what has been agreed upon, and we hope for an agreement on that at the earliest opportunity."
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Whether or not Morsi is trying to save face in unclear. There was a temporary ceasefire agreed upon while Egypt's prime minister was visiting Israel but it fell apart before it ever really began. Haertz's Barak Ravid reports Israel is ready to agree to a ceasefire if Gaza will stop firing rockets at them. Netanyahu apparently asked Germany's Angela Merkel and Barack Obama to tell Morsi to put pressure on Gaza to stop firing. Despite the White House saying Israel has a right to defend itself on Saturday, essentially endorsing any action they take, Ravid reports the U.S. is objecting to any potential ground operation in Gaza behind closed doors. They're trying to buy more time for Egypt to broker an agreement. Let's hope it works.
