UN and US pushing for a ceasefire in Gaza

The chief U.S. diplomat, John Kerry, arrived Monday in Cairo with something to offer: $ 47 million for humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip. The engagement was announced shortly after meeting with Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki -moon, who is also in Egypt – traditional mediator in the conflict between Israel and Palestine, to try to get a ceasefire. Alongside the diplomatic maneuvering, the Gaza Strip remains frontline: The Israeli army continues its bombings and military incursions while Hamas, the Islamist movement that rules Gaza since 2007, and allied militias have launched rockets into Israel causing air raid sirens in Tel Aviv.

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) confirmed Tuesday that about 100,000 citizens of Gaza are refugees in 69 centers has enabled the multilateral agency. The Israeli military operation, baptized July 8 as Margin Protector, enters Tuesday in its day 14 leaving almost 550 Palestinians dead, almost half are children, women and elderly, and 29 casualties on the Israeli side, 27 of them are soldiers and two civilians. According to witnesses quoted by the EFE agency, a UNRWA school in central Gaza has been hit by Israeli shelling. There were no casualties as the principal of this school ordered their eviction hours earlier. The UN agency has not confirmed this case but said in it twitter account that at least 72 of its facilities have been ” damaged “.

The UN Secretary General travels to Tel Aviv on Tuesday where he will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to push for a ceasefire. Subsequently Ban is scheduled to travel to Ramallah (West Bank) and hold talks with President of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) Mahmoud Abbas.

“No country can remain indifferent to missile attack and tunneling to access your territory and attack your population,” said Kerry, delving into the message of U.S. President Barack Obama, who reiterated on Monday the “right of Israel to defend itself. ” In a statement cited by Agence France Presse, U.S. Secretary of State added that in any case, ” the victims of the conflict are civilians, children and women,” which represent the largest ” matter of concern “. This Tuesday, the emergency services in the Palestinian territory have confirmed the deaths of at least four women, one of them pregnant, during an air attack on the Gazan Zaitun district.

So, the White House promises to 34.7 million euros, of which 11 will go to the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) and the rest will be distributed through development aid, food concept and drugs, according to the statement released by the U.S. State Department.

Kerry will meet in the morning on Tuesday with Egyptian Foreign Minister, Sameh Sukri, and Secretary General of the Arab League, Nabil al Arabi. Later he will meet with Egyptian President Sisi Abdel Fatah. His message to all be centered on a firm support of his country to the Egyptian mediation, posed an immediate cessation of hostilities and holding subsequent negotiations.

That same support already said Monday Ban Ki -moon, to ” thank Al Sisi efforts to achieve peace ” in Gaza. In a press conference last night, the secretary general of the UN said that “violence must end and it must end now ” and called on the Egyptian authorities to be more lax at the opening of the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, to facilitate humanitarian assistance. Sukri, however, said that Egypt has already done enough to open the border crossing “whenever the security conditions have allowed.” The foreign minister of the African country further stressed that the peace initiative will not change, even though Hamas demands that the borders are opened to lift the Gaza blockade suffering since 2007.

The Arab League also called on Monday for the Islamist movement to accept the Egyptian initiative, while the United Nations called for a strong condemnation of ” Israeli aggression ” and greater efforts to protect Palestinians.

Just on Monday, armed groups in the Gaza launched, according to Reuters, more than a hundred rockets into Israeli territory of which 17 were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense. According to the BBC, Hamas has launched 1820 rockets in the last two weeks. Israel has responded only during the morning of Tuesday, with 181 missiles on Gaza, according to Reuters.

The Army Combat been missing one of its soldiers. The confirmation two days ago after the Islamist group Hamas announced its capture. Israeli military officials suspect is dead.

Although there have been meetings in Qatar or Turkey, the international community has launched a new diplomatic stake, which hopes to get a deal promoted by Egypt. But the positions still seem distant. Ban Ki Moon is scheduled to leave Cairo today to continue his tour of Jordan, Jerusalem and Ramallah. While Kerry may also get to Jerusalem tonight.

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Posted by Jamshed Sindhu on Jul 23 2014. Filed under Latest News, World. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.