The UN and US say all sides have agreed to an unconditional 72-hour humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. In a joint statement US Secretary of State John Kerry and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Hamas and Israel will observe the truce from 8am local time. Israeli ground forces will, however, remain in place. This ceasefire is critical to giving innocent civilians a much-needed reprieve from violence, the statement said. During this period, civilians in Gaza will receive urgently needed humanitarian relief, and the opportunity to carry out vital functions, including burying the dead, taking care of the injured, and restocking food supplies. We urge all parties to act with restraint until this humanitarian ceasefire begins, and to fully abide by their commitments during the ceasefire. Israeli and Palestinian delegations are to travel to Cairo immediately to negotiate a more durable deal during the halt in fighting. The truce comes hours after the United Nations announced that a quarter of Gazas population, some 440,000 people, had been displaced by the fighting. The head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), Pierre Krahenbuhl, said those in UN shelters are facing dire conditions as a result of the extensive and often disproportionate use of force. More than 1,400 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have lost their lives since Israel launched its offensive earlier this month in the face of persistent Hamas rocket attacks.
Posted on: Thu, 31 Jul 2014 22:04:46 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015