Israel accepts Egypt’s ceasefire proposal

The plan calls for a ceasefire to begin within 12 hours of “unconditional acceptance” by the sides, followed by the opening of Gaza’s border crossings and talks in Cairo within two days.

A week of heavy fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip that has killed at least 185 Palestinians, most of them civilians. Heidi Levine for The National

JERUSALEM // Israel has accepted Egypt’s proposal for a ceasefire to end a week-long conflict with Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet met on Tuesday morning and accepted the proposal. However, a senior Hamas official said the Palestinian militant group rejected the plan.

The three-step plan was meant to start at 9am local time with a ceasefire going into effect within 12 hours of “unconditional acceptance” by the two sides. That would be followed by the opening of Gaza’s border crossings and talks in Cairo between the sides within two days, Egypt’s foreign ministry said.

Hamas has acknowledged “diplomatic movement” on ending the conflict.

Gaza’s crossings should be opened for people and goods “once the security situation becomes stable,” a copy of the proposal said.

The late-night offer by Egypt to broker a ceasefire plan marked the first sign of a breakthrough in international efforts to end the conflict.

Israel launched the offensive on July 8, saying it was a response to rocket fire out of Hamas-ruled Gaza. The conflict has killed 185 Palestinians and wounded more than 1,000 people.

There have been no Israelis killed, although several have been wounded by rocket shrapnel.

Ahead of the Egyptian announcement, there appeared to be no slowdown in the fighting, with Hamas for the first time launching an unmanned drone into Israeli airspace that was shot down.

* Associated Press