Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh met in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday in a bid to restore a cease-fire with Israel. The meeting ended with the two sides agreeing their factions would meet again. "We are working to recommit to the truce," Abbas aide Nabil Abu Rdeneh said.
Haniyeh aide Ghazi Hamad said in a statement that the two leaders urged the international community to protect the Palestinians and pressure Israel to halt its strikes.
Salah Bardawil, a Hamas spokesman, said Israel must stop its attacks if there is to be a cease-fire. "There is no room to talk about a truce while there is Israeli aggression and escalation," he said.
"If it is going to be for Gaza only, then no one will be able to convince the Palestinian resistance factions to commit to that," said Haniyeh political advisor, Dr. Ahmed Yousef.
