John Kerry proposes week-long ceasefire • Report: "Hamas agrees""

July 25, 2014   

A new ceasefire initiative was presented to Israel by US Secretary of State John Kerry. According to the proposal, a temporary ceasefire will take place for a week - starting this coming Sunday, during which time talks will take place between Hamas and Israel regarding a permanent ceasefire. Israel and the Palestinians will discuss this week the economic, security and political issues of the 'hudna', which will allow Hamas to organize for the next war against Israel. הקבינט המדיני-ביטחוני יתכנס בצהריים לדיון בפרטי ההצעה האמריקנית ובתגובת חמאס. העיתון הערבי 'אל-חיאת' שיוצא לאור בלונדון מדווח, כי חמאס הסכים עקרונית להפסקת אש הומניטרית, שהציע מזכיר המדינה האמריקני ג'ון קרי. על פי הדיווח הפלסטיני, הצעת קרי כוללת ערובות לפתיחת המעברים לאחר הפסקת אש, מבלי שחרור מחבלי עסקת שליט שנעצרו. According to the report by Al-Hayat, the Secretary of State is in Cairo putting the finishing touches on an agreement that is set to take effect on Sunday. A senior Hamas official told the newspaper that the terrorist organization's real achievement in this agreement is the opening of the crossings. The official denied any clause regarding the disarmament of the Gaza Strip. Hamas' political bureau chief, Khaled Meshaal, who is leading the talks, stated that Hamas would not agree to a long-term ceasefire unless its conditions were met. Hamas' conditions, as Meshaal presented them, included lifting the blockade on Gaza, a demand that requires the agreement of Egypt - Hamas's enemy. In an interview he gave to the BBC last night, Meshaal said that Hamas would be ready for a ceasefire in parallel with the lifting of the blockade on Gaza. This is a "softening" of his position, which until now had conditioned Hamas's agreement to a ceasefire on the lifting of the naval blockade on the Strip, not just the land blockade. However, British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, who arrived in the region on a "skipping trip" aimed at bringing about a ceasefire, called on Hamas to agree to a ceasefire with Israel without any conditions. Hammond made the remarks at a press conference in Cairo, Channel 7 reported.