UPDATED ON:
Friday, December 26, 2008
19:04 Mecca time, 16:04 GMT
 
News Middle East
Israel to Hamas: Enough is enough
Gazan armed groups have responded to killings of comrades in Israeli raids with rocket fire [AFP]

Egypt has urged Israel and Hamas rulers of Gaza to hold their fire to enable Cairo to try to broker a new truce between them.

Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, made the plea during talks with Tzipi Livni, the Israeli foreign minister, in Cairo on Thursday.

Mubarak called for Israel to show restraint in responding to renewed rocket and mortar barrages from the Gaza Strip, and also urged Hamas to halt its fire immediately.

Ahmed Aboul Gheit, the Egyptian foreign minister, said at a joint news conference with Livni: "Egypt will not stop efforts (to broker a truce) as long as the parties want this, but I cannot imagine that we can convince the two sides to go back to the calm as long as there is this escalation.

“What we are asking them both is to restrain themselves, and then we see how to come back to that period of quiet," he said.

Prospects of restoring the Egyptian-brokered truce dimmed this week after Israeli soldiers killed three Hamas fighters who they said were trying to plant explosives along the Gaza-Israeli border.

Palestinian armed groups responded with rocket fire at southern Israel.

An Israeli air raid reportedly killed one Palestinian and injured several others near the town of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

'Unbearable situation'

Livni, leader of Israel's ruling Kadima party who hopes to succeed Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, after the next elections, described the latest escalation as "unbearable".

"Hamas needs to understand that our aspiration to live in peace does not mean that Israel will take this kind of situation any longer. Enough is enough," Livni said in Cairo.

During her meeting with Mubarak, Livni said Israel must and would respond to protect its citizens.

Israel would not be deterred from acting because its February 10 elections are approaching, she said.

If Hamas thinks so, it is "wrong",  Livni said.

Israel is running out of patience with Hamas, she said, calling the group an obstacle on the road to a Palestinian state.

Livni stressed that she didn't come to Egypt "to receive approval for a military operation" but "to discuss an intolerable situation for the citizens of Israel, and what Israel must do to protect its citizens".

 Source: Agencies
Feedback Number of comments : 17
 
ahmed
Afghanistan
26/12/2008
not a word on the rockets on ISRAEL?
I wonder why there is no mention of the hundred rockets shot from gaza as soon as the truce was over. maybe it is because Al Jazeera is not interested in describing the reason for Israels respons. Open debate cannot happen when the truth is hidden

Luk
Australia
26/12/2008
Israel: enough is enough
We say to Israel, enough is enough. We say to Hosni Mubarak enough is enough playing double game. Israel has to stop occupation for any peace move.

Compassionate
Canada
26/12/2008
Headline - "Israel to Hamas: Enough is Enough"
Livni - Your word "unbearable" correctly describes what YOU'RE doing to the Palestinian people in Gaza (and the West Bank). World to Israel : ENOUGH is ENOUGH!!!

masud
Morocco
27/12/2008
I say to Hamas, enough is enough..
it takes two to Tango, seems hamas wants to dance alone and Israel wants a partner. Hamas needs now to move over and give the real Gazian some say.

Tal
Israel
27/12/2008
Eating their own-prepared dish, thats all...
While Israel opens borders and sending in humanitarian support, using 40 trucks, the Hamas is bombarding that same border with Mortar shells and rockets... that's why Gaza is in it's current shape. They don't want any help, they want to be looked so miserable. hard to believe it, but it's harder to try and compromise with such fanatic acts. Israel is the frustrated one, because it is which that lives in the unknown - being attacked without any relation to anything it does.

maytal meshulam
Israel
27/12/2008
Gaza was given back to the Palestinians, and guess what happend? They use the territory to shoot missles at Israel, to build underground tunnels for weapon smuggling. It's about time the Palestinians stop blaming Israel and the rest of the world for their situation and start taking responsability for their own actions. Shooting missles non stop to Israeli territories, and using their own people as human sheilds!!!!

give me a break with this BS
Canada
27/12/2008
Do people really care anymore?
I don't understand how this still makes front page news.... these people have been fighting for thousands of years. Who has a right to be there? Who doesn't? Who cares.

yair
Israel
27/12/2008
come and see !!!
To kill children in Israel with rockets is ok? From the moment we gave them to do what they want with their lives - the first thing to do is to vote Hamas to goverment and to kill people on the Israeli side! Tell them to build not to kill. Israel can't stand more then 3 years with 3000 kasam on our house and not to do nothing!

Steve
United Kingdom
27/12/2008
Fair
Good, UNBIASED, story it mentions attacks from both sides, and how each are responses to longer running, underlying tensions.

petreem
Lebanon
27/12/2008
look who's talkin'..huh..we are the ones who have the right to say that..we have the absolute right to say to israel that enough is enough. israel dare not say that to any person in the world. it hasn't been 1 hour since the first bomb and already over 120 palestinians have died..it makes me sick..

Zoar
Australia
27/12/2008
Get real
No country should not protect their citzens, Israel has been under attack for the last few years from Gaza,and No one seems to care, Unless they shoot back. So is it enough restrain?

straightalker
United States
27/12/2008
be fair
Hamas was looking for a reaction by firing missiles into Israel. What did you really expect Israel to do - nothing? Hamas could live in peace and focus on its citizens if it wanted to. Israel makes mistakes like any country, but dont blame it for self-defense.

Joe
United States
27/12/2008
Hammas does not repesent the Palistinians
The People of Gaza I believe, want peace and prosperity. Hammas/Iran only want to destroy Israel. OK let them fight, win or lose...victory or defeat. There is no other way to deal with Hammas. G-D help the people of Gaza who are hostages to hammas. Peace through Victory

Jacob
United States
27/12/2008
The Hamas situation
Hamas has brought nothing but terror to gaza. Hundreds of men, women, and children have been killed by them on both sides.. The sooner they're out the sooner the humanitarian situation will improve for the majority of the people in Gaza.

hAROLD
United States
27/12/2008
enough is enough
Compassionate in Canada. If you were getting rockets fired every day from the US what would you do? It is SIMPLE. Stop trying to destroy Israel and the Palestineans can have true Peace tommorow. Get Real....Israel is not going away so accept it in peace and then the area will prosper for all mankind. Stop pointing fingers..wage peace not hatred

Yaron
Israel
27/12/2008
What other country accepted rockets for 8 years?
Would you allow it in your country without any response?

to Luk
Australia
27/12/2008
Pay back time
Israel is NOT occupying Gaza. It withdrew from there, and has no business going back there. Hamas control over Gaza was taken by force from the elected Palestinian government, and since then they have been doing nothing for the Gazans but aggravating Israel. Over 1,000 rockets has been shoot at Israeli towns and villages this year – Hamas has badly served the Palestinian cause and now it is pay back time.

 
ARTICLE TOOLS
 Email Article  Email article
 Print Article  Print article
 Send Feedback  Send feedback
 Share article  Share article