Israel and Egypt are expected to enter intensive negotiations in the coming days in an attempt to agree on a mechanism that will bring the fighting in the Gaza Strip to an end. Meanwhile, the cabinet approved Wednesday a continuation of Operation Cast Lead.
International donors pledged $7.4 billion for the Palestinians at a conference in Paris on Monday, a massive sum that beat the Palestinians’ own expectations, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said.
Israel and the Palestinian Authority agreed Tuesday to immediately launch peace negotiations in order to reach an agreement by the end of 2008, President Bush said in his remarks at the Middle East peace conference in Annapolis, Maryland.