UNITED NATIONS, July 22 (RIA Novosti) - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said on Tuesday that he supports Egypt’s attempts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
“The most promising prospect of a ceasefire comes in the form of the initiative put forward by Egypt on the basis of the November 2012 understanding on a ceasefire,” Ban Ki-moon told to the UN Security Council speaking from Ramallah.
But, according to the UN chief, while “this effort has garnered the support of [Palestinian President [Mahmoud] Abbas and the League of Arab States, unfortunately, Hamas has yet to respond positively. I encourage all those with influence to urge constructive action.”
“I urge all of you to respond to [the UN's] emergency flash appeal for $115 million to address the most pressing humanitarian needs of the people of Gaza,” Ban Ki-moon added.
Early on Monday, the UN Security Council called for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza as the conflict killed at least 530 Palestinians and 20 Israelis and displaced tens of thousands in the past two weeks.
Israel started its Protective Edge operation on July 8 in response to Palestinian aggression. Ten days later, the Israeli Army launched a ground offensive aiming to destroy underground tunnels dug and used by rebels to secretly enter Israeli territory.
