Hamas fires rockets, Israel bombs Gaza despite talk of truce

[webfact]

Hamas fires rockets, Israel bombs Gaza despite talk of truce

By Nidal al-Mughrabi and Dan Williams

 

Streaks of light are pictured as rockets are launched from the northern Gaza Strip towards Israel, as seen from Sderot, Israel August 8, 2018. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

 

GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Gaza militants fired rockets into Israel and the Israeli military responded with air strikes on Wednesday despite talk from both sides of progress towards a possible truce to avert a fourth war in a decade.

 

A senior member of Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist group that controls Gaza, said talks mediated by the United Nations and Egypt on a deal to tamp down tensions were in "advanced stages". The remarks were echoed by a top Israeli lawmaker, suggesting a possible breakthrough after four months of confrontations and clashes that stirred mutual threats of war.

 

The Israeli army said Wednesday's violence began with militants firing guns at an Israeli engineering vehicle, and Israeli troops responding with tank fire. Later, Palestinians fired about 70 rockets across the border, and Israeli aircraft struck at least a dozen militant targets.

 

One Israeli was hurt by the rockets, rescue services said. One Hamas militant was killed and two others were wounded in the Israeli air strike, Palestinian officials said. Five civilians were also injured.

 

"I am deeply alarmed by the recent escalation of violence between Gaza and Israel, and particularly by today’s multiple rockets fired towards communities in southern Israel," said U.N. Middle East envoy Nickolay Mladenov.

 

The U.N., he said, has engaged with Egypt in an "unprecedented effort" to avoid serious conflict, but warned "the situation can rapidly deteriorate with devastating consequences for all people."

 

Gaza has been controlled by Hamas for more than a decade, during which time it has fought three wars against Israel, most recently in 2014. Along with Egypt, Israel maintains a blockade that has brought the territory's economy to a state of collapse.

 

Around two million people live in Gaza, mainly stateless descendants of Palestinians who fled or were driven out of what is now Israel at its founding in 1948.

 

Gazans have held weekly protests against Israel at camps on the border since March 30, some of which have become violent. The Israeli army has killed at least 158 Palestinians during those protests, and a Gaza sniper killed an Israeli soldier.

 

Neither Hamas nor Israel appears keen on another full-blown conflict. Public demands by both sides for the other to release detainees appear to have been a stumbling block in securing a long-term truce.

 

"We can say that actions led by the United Nations and Egypt are in advanced stages and we hope it could yield some good from them," Khalil Al-Hayya, deputy Hamas chief in Gaza, told Al Jazeera television.

 

"What is required is for calm to be restored along the border between us and the Zionist enemy."

 

"NEW DAY"

Avi Dichter, head of the Israeli parliament's foreign affairs and defence committee, struck a cautiously upbeat note on Wednesday. "I very much hope that we are on the brink of a new day on the matter of Gaza," he told reporters.

 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called off a trip to Colombia this week to attend to the Gaza truce talks and was due to meet with security chiefs for late-night consultations.

 

Israel has played down prospects for a comprehensive ceasefire, speaking in terms of a more limited quid-pro-quo.

 

In return for calm in Gaza, Israeli officials said on Sunday they would reopen a commercial border terminal that had been shuttered in response to damage caused by fires set by burning Palestinian kites and balloons lofted over the frontier. They would also expand a Palestinian fishing zone.

 

Neither the United Nations nor Egypt have publicly detailed their proposals for Gaza, beyond saying they should bring extensive economic relief.

 

Hayya said foreign donors were collecting "hundreds of millions of dollars" for electricity, water, health and job-creation projects in Gaza, but that these "require stability".

 

In exchange for any truce, Israel wants to recover the bodies of two soldiers killed in Gaza and gain freedom for two of its civilians who wandered into the enclave.

 

For its part, Hamas demands that Israel free Palestinian security prisoners - a proposal that Netanyahu's far-right coalition partners balk at.

 

"We want to free our brave prisoners and we have no objection to beginning now," Hayya said. "Let it be a prisoner swap deal, (Palestinian) prisoners in return for Zionist soldiers."

 

(Editing by Mark Trevelyan, Alison Williams, Peter Graff and Cynthia Osterman)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-08-09

[nobodysfriend]

aggression and reaction ... a vicious circle with no way out ... it's their karma it seems ...

the only way to peace is in negotiations , acceptance of each other , no more violence for both sides , no more provocation and illegal expansion by Israel and a state for the palestinians ...

Will that ever happen ? -------- not in the near future , it seems ...

 

 

 " Israel has played down prospects for a comprehensive ceasefire, speaking in terms of a more limited quid-pro-quo. " ---------------- an eye for an eye ...

Like this everybody will become blind ... ( Gandhi )

 

" The U.N., he said, has engaged with Egypt in an "unprecedented effort" to avoid serious conflict, but warned "the situation can rapidly deteriorate with devastating consequences for all people." ------------ Looks like that will happen really ...

 

" The Israeli army said Wednesday's violence began with militants firing guns at an Israeli engineering vehicle, and Israeli troops responding with tank fire. Later, Palestinians fired about 70 rockets across the border, and Israeli aircraft struck at least a dozen militant targets. "

 

--------------- remind me of kids --- one gets kicked by a foot , than smacks the head of the aggressor who in return calls his big brother who confronts the family of the other one , insults are exchanged , the ' face ' is lost , the reputation is damaged , need to kill one to " teach them a lesson " ... that's the way it goes ...

Stupid and primitiv  ----------- still the screaming apes we once were ....

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 9, 2018 by nobodysfriend

[lvr181]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

"What is required is for calm to be restored along the border between us and the Zionist enemy."

Wow, what a 'diplomatic" statement for someone who proclaims they (the puppets of Iran) want calm! 

[AsiaHand]

They have not learned their lessons yet ? The lesson is" fire a rocket into Isreal and we will bomb the shxt out of your leaders".

[bendejo]

The Palestinians want their country back.  Period.  There will always be Palestinians who will not accept The Nakba.  Any person put in their position would feel the same way.

The Israeli approach is to force all the Palestinians to go far away or kill them all.

But those same Western powers who engineered this catastrophe seem to think they can negotiate a peace (hey look at that smiling man -- it's Tony Blair!).  Every US president since the 1970s has tried to, and just about every one claimed they were "real close" to an agreement.  Even W in his final days in office made comments it might happen before he stepped down.  Currently the great world statesman on the case is the son-in-law of POTUS, another 2nd-generation real estate man: enough said.

I think all these "peace" attempts just deepens the stubborn resolve of both sides.

 

 

[Morch]

 

@nobodysfriend

 

This topic is about the Gaza Strip. There are no Israeli settlements there, and "illegal expansion" is hardly the issue. As for negotiations etc. - did you actually read the OP? Because it definitely mentioned this even in the headline, along with assigning the party who broke the "peace" in this instance. Sure enough, in your "account", the "provocation" charge is assigned to the other side.

 

 

Quid-pro-quo is not "an eye for an eye".

 

[Morch]

10 hours ago, AsiaHand said:

They have not learned their lessons yet ? The lesson is" fire a rocket into Isreal and we will bomb the shxt out of your leaders".

 

Top leaders are not usually targeted. At least not those associated with the political wing of Hamas. Regardless, the ones who pay for leadership's failure are the people - same as most places. In this instance, the suffering of the populace is also used to fuel the agenda of their leadership....

[Morch]

20 minutes ago, bendejo said:

The Palestinians want their country back.  Period.  There will always be Palestinians who will not accept The Nakba.  Any person put in their position would feel the same way.

The Israeli approach is to force all the Palestinians to go far away or kill them all.

But those same Western powers who engineered this catastrophe seem to think they can negotiate a peace (hey look at that smiling man -- it's Tony Blair!).  Every US president since the 1970s has tried to, and just about every one claimed they were "real close" to an agreement.  Even W in his final days in office made comments it might happen before he stepped down.  Currently the great world statesman on the case is the son-in-law of POTUS, another 2nd-generation real estate man: enough said.

I think all these "peace" attempts just deepens the stubborn resolve of both sides.

 

 

 

I don't know that any person would keep up decades of futile violence, which only serves to worsen their  predicament, but that's a matter of opinion. The characterization of the "Israeli approach" is the usual bogus fare, considering there's plenty of Palestinians around. Doubt there's even a unified Israeli take on these matters, but guess it's much easier to label and over simplify.

 

Topic isn't really about peace negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel.

[JimmyTheMook]

Hamas makes Donald Trump look like a Saint.

 

 

[Morch]

Apparently one of the wounded is a Thai woman working in Israel.

 

 

[Scott]

Troll post removed.  

 

[metisdead]

A troll post containing an off topic profane video has been removed. 

[JimmyTheMook]

Where the true problem is:

 

 

 

[Ron19]

Off topic and bickering posts as well as answers to them have been removed.