Internecine Feuds

(Newser) - The UN Security Council tonight passed a resolution—with the US abstaining—calling for "an immediate and durable" cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, the BBC reports. The vote was 14-0. It's unclear how much of an effect it will have on the ground, and Israel appeared to be resuming its airstrikes. About 750 Palestinians and 12 Israelis have been killed in 13 days of fighting. More »

(Newser) - The destruction being visited upon Gaza could easily have been avoided, Jimmy Carter writes in the Washington Post . The former president, during visits last year, saw both the effects of Hamas rockets on Israeli communities, and the misery and malnutrition caused by the Gaza blockade. He details his own efforts, and observes that improved living conditions in Gaza would make peace infinitely more likely. More »

(Newser) - Israel intensified its airstrikes in Gaza last night, reports CNN, bombing about 60 targets across the Strip on the 13th day of the operation. One of the targets was a mosque that the Israeli military claims stored weapons and sheltered Hamas fighters. The airstrikes also targeted 10 Hamas tunnels used to funnel arms from Egypt as well as "a number of armed gunmen," according to an IDF spokesman. More »

(Newser) - The Red Cross has condemned the Israeli military in unusually harsh terms after finding 15 corpses in shattered houses the organization was prevented from visiting, the Washington Post reports. Officials said they received reports of casualties in the Gaza neighborhood Saturday but weren’t allowed to enter until yesterday. Four children were found lying next to their dead mothers, the group said, emaciated but alive. More »

(Newser) - Israel continues to press its assault and Hamas continues to fire its rockets, but a sliver of hope emerged tonight toward an end to the Gaza hostilities, MSNBC reports. Representatives from Israel, Hamas, and the Palestinian Authority will meet—probably separately—with Egyptian officials in Cairo tomorrow to discuss a possible truce. Twelve days of fighting have left 688 Palestinians and 10 Israelis dead. More »

(Newser) - Fighting resumed in Gaza today after a 3-hour ceasefire, the Times of London reports. The lull was broken by a rocket attack launched by Palestinian militants into the Israeli city of Beersheba, Israeli officials said. The Israeli military plans to halt fighting every day from 1-4pm (local time) to allow aid to reach civilians in Gaza. More »

(Newser) - Israel and Hamas are considering a new truce proposal floated by Egypt and France, Reuters reports. Few details emerged, but the US supports the plan, as does Europe. The development comes on the deadliest day yet of the conflict, after an Israeli missile struck a UN school and killed at least 42. In the meantime, Israel has offered to halt shelling in certain areas for limited times so residents can receive supplies, the BBC notes. More »