Kerry’s Rejected Proposal for Israel-Gaza Ceasefire Leaked

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By JTA July 27, 2014

Details of the week-long cease-fire proposal U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry offered and Israel rejected emerged in leaks to various media outlets.

The proposal made Friday, according to the leaked documents, calls for Israel and the Palestinian factions in Gaza to halt hostilities and then convene within 48 hours to discuss other terms, “including arrangements to secure the opening of border and non-border crossings, allow the entry of goods and people and ensure the social and economic livelihood of the Palestinian people living in Gaza, including fishing rights up to 12nm, transfer funds to Gaza for the payment of salaries for public employees, and address security issues.”

According to the draft proposal, Egypt, the United States, Turkey, Qatar, the United Nations, the Arab League and the European Union would support the cease-fire “through a major humanitarian assistance initiative to address the immediate humanitarian needs of the people of Gaza, including an initial commitment of $47 million from the United States.”

In an interview Sunday with Israel Radio, Israeli Justice Minister Tzipi Livni said she told Kerry Friday that his proposal was “completely unacceptable” and that it “would strengthen extremists in the region.” Livni said that the proposal changed and improved in revisions over the course of the day.

i24, a news website with an Israel focus, quoted a senior American official as saying that the proposal was not a formal plan and that Israel’s security demands would be accounted for in a cease-fire.

Israel’s security Cabinet unanimously rejected the cease-fire proposal. Hamas and the other Palestinian factions also rejected the proposal.

The document leaked to various international media differs in some details from a draft version leaked to Israel’s Haaretz newspaper.

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