The West Warms to Hamas, But Israel Stays Cold

Blames Hamas for sabotaging talks with violence

(NEWSER) - Condoleezza Rice made stops in both Cairo and Israel today in her effort to restart stalled peace talks, telling reporters that she understood "Israel's need to defend itself" against Hamas rockets, but was concerned about "the loss of innocent life" in Israel's retaliatory offensive in Gaza. Rice blamed Hamas for using the rockets to derail the two-state solution in the region. More»

Egypt brokers deal to stop escalating violence

(AP) - Gaza militants agreed to a cease-fire with Israel to stop spiking violence, a Hamas official said today, after a deadly attack across the Egyptian border on Israeli vehicles set off a three-day round of rapidly escalating Israeli airstrikes and rocket barrages from Gaza. The sudden flareup also threatened Israel-Egypt relations, after three Egyptian police were killed as the cross-border clash developed Thursday. Egypt complained strongly as thousands demonstrated in Cairo, and Israel apologized. More»

Netanyahu, Abbas will meet president—but maybe not each other

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama has invited the leaders of Israel, Egypt, and the Palestinian Authority for talks in Washington in a new bid for a Middle East peace agreement, reports the BBC. Obama extended the invitations after a meeting yesterday with Jordan’s King Abdullah, at which the president spoke of "profound cynicism" surrounding the peace process. There is no guarantee the Israeli and Palestinian leaders would meet directly. More»

(NEWSER) - Hamas says its negotiators have a reached a deal with Israel for a long-term Gaza truce, Reuters reports. A senior leader said the truce ensures the opening of all commercial crossings and will be announced over the weekend. The Egyptian-brokered pact would replace a tentative truce put in place last month after a 22-day Israeli offensive left 1,300 Palestinians dead. Israel, in the midst of election chaos, had no official comment. More»

Neighbors must be involved: Friedman

(NEWSER) - The dominant theory holds that the two-state solution is the answer to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But the war in Gaza has pushed tensions past the point where an equitable sharing of geography is enough, argues New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman. He wants a "five-state solution—Palestine, Egypt, Jordan, Israel, and Saudi Arabia." More»