At the end of a two-hour meeting, the ministers of Israel's security cabinet decided to respond positively to the Egyptian proposal of a cease-fire to end the week-long conflict between Israel and Hamas, to come into effect at 9:00 this morning. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened the cabinet this morning and presented the draft cease-fire proposal put forward by Egypt. Under the draft that the ministers accepted, Israel will re-adopt the understandings reached after the Pillar of Cloud operation eighteen months ago, and the situation will be restored to what it was before the current round of fighting began.
Hamas for its part has yet to accept the cease-fire proposal, and its military wing is reported to be opposed to it. Rockets have continued to be fired form the Gaza Strip, with sirens sounding in Ashkelon, Ashdod and surrounding areas this morning
Diplomatic sources said at the end of the meeting that the fact that Hamas was expressing opposition to the proposal indicated that, as far as it was concerned, this was a surrender agreement. They said that Hamas's rocket capability had been frustrated, and that it had no achievement to show, and was unable to pay wages. "Hamas is playing games," they added.
In the second stage, delegations from Israel and Hamas will go to Egypt to discuss details of the agreement, to be formulated within 48 hours. The understandings between Israel and Hamas were reached without pre-conditions.
Meanwhile, this morning, sirens were sounded in the Ashkelon area and in communities bordering the Gaza Strip. Two rockets were fired from Sinai at Eilat last night. One fell in a built-up area and lightly wounded ten people.
Politicians on the political right in Israel were quick to attack the cease-fire, while those on the left were supportive of the cabinet's decision. Finance Committee chairman Nissan Slomiansky (Habayit Hayehudi) said, "The government of Israel ought to apologize to the people of this country for its lack of courage, and for the fact that in another year or two we shall have to go through the same thing again. It's a pity that we don't have an Iron Dome that can intercept the government's hesitancy."
Meretz chairwoman Zahava Gal-On called on Netanyahu to behave responsibly and to accept the Egyptian cease-fire proposal, and "not to be swayed by the warmongers Liberman, Bennett, Danon and the rest of the extreme right, who will call on him to refuse, to crush them, and to go in with ground forces. A cease-fire is a correct decision from a position of strength, out of the understanding that it is not possible to defeat terror either by attacks from the air or by a ground incursion."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 15, 2014
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