Israel used ceasefire plan to escalate war - Opinion - Al Jazeera English
A week of ceasefire calls, efforts and proposals has not stopped Israel from launching a ground invasion of Gaza in tandem with its aerial and naval bombardments. Developments suggest that Israel, while accepting an Egyptian proposal,
used it as a pretext to intensify and widen its offensive. Cairo, which
since the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi last summer is as hostile
to Hamas as Israel is, may have enabled such a plan, deliberately or
otherwise.
Hamas, which has roots in Egypt's outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, said
it was never consulted about Cairo's ceasefire proposal, having learned
of it from media reports. It is extraordinary that a supposed mediator
between two warring parties would exclude one of them from the process.
This would almost ensure that party's rejection, regardless of
the proposal's content, because it would be humiliating to accept
something presented as a fait accompli. As such, Hamas' rejection was
hardly surprising, describing the initiative as one of "bowing and submission".
More than 300 people have died so far in Gaza as a result of the Israeli offensive [Reuters]
