Note: I think that until we hear a third party, for example the Egyptian Government or the UN, announce that agreement has been reached on a ceasefire we should be very doubtful of any other announcements we may hear.
The five hour ceasefire went well today. It seems there were two violations. Someone in Gaza fired three mortars into Israel and the IDF fired mortars into Gaza in retaliation.
This is the UN Secretary General's statement, issued following the official end of the ceasefire.
New York, 17 July 2014 - Statement attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General on the humanitarian pause in Gaza
The Secretary-General welcomes the humanitarian pause in Gaza today and appreciates that it has mostly been respected by all parties. This temporary ceasefire, brokered by his Special Coordinator, Robert Serry, has allowed civilians in Gaza to resume some daily routines and for repairs to start on essential electrical and water infrastructure. In Israel, civilians have had a reprieve from rocket fire. Throughout, the United Nations has continued providing essential humanitarian assistance.
The pause shows that a cessation of hostilities is possible if all the parties demonstrate the necessary will and put the interests of civilians, who have borne the brunt of this escalation, first. Encouraged by discussions in Cairo, the Secretary-General hopes today’s humanitarian pause can lead to a more durable calm and expresses once again his support for international efforts, led by Egypt, to arrive at a sustainable ceasefire. In this regard, it will be crucial to address the underlying factors that have led to the recent escalation, including governance issues, the need to bring Gaza back under one legitimate Palestinian Government adhering to the PLO commitments, the full opening of the legal crossings, and other unimplemented core elements of Security Council Resolution 1860.
The Secretary-General reiterates the United Nations readiness to help facilitate all efforts to this end. He has dispatched his Special Coordinator to Gaza to help further de-escalate tensions and achieve a lasting ceasefire that will spare Palestinians and Israelis future such rounds of violence.
http://www.un.org/...
Palestinian National Authority (PA) officials, Hamas officials, and Israeli government officials met with Egyptian government officials in Cairo today to discuss a ceasefire.
Former British PM Tony Blair, the Envoy of the Quartet on the Middle East, was also reportedly involved in the discussions.
There is a great deal of discussion of what Hamas' conditions are.
There is also the question of whether the PA and Hamas will come together or drift apart during these negotiations, and by how much.
It seems that the Egyptian ceasefire initiative was essentially Israel's opening position and today Hamas presented its counter offer.
These are two lists which I have found which claim to be Hamas' conditions.
The first is from yesterday and the second is from today.
1.Mutual cessation of the war and withdrawal of tanks to previous locations and the return of farmers to work their land in the agricultural border areas.
2.Release of all the Palestinians detained since 23 June 2014 and improvement of the conditions of Palestinian prisoners, especially the prisoners from Jerusalem, Gaza and Palestinians of the interior [present-day Israel].
3.Total lifting of the siege of Gaza and opening the border crossings to goods and people and allowing in all food and industrial supplies and construction of a power plant sufficient to supply all of Gaza.
4.Construction of an international seaport and an international airport supervised by the UN and non-biased countries.
5.Expansion of the maritime fishing zone to 10 kms and supplying fishermen with larger fishing and cargo vessels.
6.Converting the Rafah crossing into an international crossing under supervision of the UN and Arab and friendly countries.
7.Signing a 10-year truce agreement and deployment of international monitors to the borders.
8.A commitment by the occupation government not to violate Palestinian airspace and easing of conditions for worshipers in al-Aqsa mosque.
9.The occupation will not interfere in the affairs of the Palestinian government and will not hinder national reconciliation.
10.Restoration of the border industrial areas and their protection and development.
http://electronicintifada.net/...
First – Opening all the crossing with the Gaza Strip.
Second – Opening Rafah crossing, the link between Gaza and Egypt, on a permanent basis, 24 hours per day with international guarantees it will not be closed.
Third – A maritime corridor to Gaza.
Fourth – Allowing residents of the Gaza Strip to pray in the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
Fifth – Israel will release the prisoners who were freed as part of the “Shalit” deal, and Israel will abide by the previous agreement reached by prisoners and the Israel Prison Service with Egyptian mediation in 2012.
http://electronicintifada.net/...
When you consider these lists you need to consider that
a good deal of what is in them (especially regarding border crossings, the port, the airport, exports, imports, rebuilding, access to farmland, travelling between Gaza and the West Bank, and the reconciliation of the PA and Hamas) has already been agreed on in Israeli-Palestinian-Hamas-UN-US-EU agreements and/or called for in UN Security Council Resolutions and UN General Assembly Resolutions. But they have not been implemented.
Some of the relevant documents are:
Tha Agreed documents on Movement and Access from and to Gaza (AMA) - 15 Nov 2005
http://www.unsco.org/...
UN Security Council Resolution 1860 (2009)
http://unispal.un.org/...
The Bertini Commitments
http://www.ochaopt.org/...
UN General Assembly Resolution 67/121
http://unispal.un.org/...
You also might also want to check these for additional information:
The European Union Border Assistance Mission at the Rafah Crossing Point (EUBAM Rafah)
http://www.eubam-rafah.eu/...
UN OCHA The Agreement on Movement and Access One Year On
http://www.ochaopt.org/...
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Understanding Regarding Ceasefire in Gaza Strip (21 November 2012)
1. a. Israel shall stop all hostilities in the Gaza Strip land, sea and air including incursions and targeting of individuals.
b. All Palestinian factions shall stop all hostilities from the Gaza Strip against Israel including rocket attacks, and all attacks along the border.
c. Opening the crossings and facilitating the movements of people and transfer of goods, and refraining from restricting residents' free movements, and targeting residents in border areas and procedures of implementation shall be dealt with after 24 hours from the start of the ceasefire.
d. Other matters as may be requested shall be addressed.
2. Implementation Mechanism:
a. Setting up the zero hour for the Ceasefire Understanding to enter into effect.
b. Egypt shall receive assurances from each party that the party commits to what was agreed upon.
c. Each party shall commit itself not to perform any acts that would breach this understanding. In case of any observations, Egypt – as the sponsor of this understanding – shall be informed to follow up.
The text of the Egyptian Initiative for a Ceasefire in Gaza
1. Owing to Egypt’s historical responsibility, and out of belief in the importance of achieving peace in the region, protecting the lives of innocents, and ending the bloodshed;
Egypt calls upon Israel and all of the Palestinian factions to enact an immediate ceasefire, due to the fact that escalation and mutual violence, and the victims that will result, will not be in the interest of either party as such, during the period of the ceasefire, both sides shall abide by the following:
a. Israel shall cease all hostilities against the Gaza Strip via land, sea, and air, and shall commit to refrain from conducting any ground raids against Gaza and targeting civilians.
b. All Palestinian factions in Gaza shall cease all hostilities from the Gaza Strip against Israel via land, sea, air, and underground, and shall commit to refrain from firing all types of rockets, and from attacks on the borders or targeting civilians.
c. Crossings shall be opened and the passage of persons and goods through border crossings shall be facilitated once the security situation becomes stable on the ground.
d. Other issues, including security issues shall be discussed with the two sides.
2. Method of implementation of the initiative:
a. It has been decided to initiate implementation of the de-escalation agreements at -- : -- hours (GMT) on -- / 7 / 2014, pending the implementation of a full ceasefire within twelve hours of the announcement of the Egyptian initiative and its unconditional acceptance by both sides.
b. High-level delegations from both the Israeli government and the Palestinian factions shall be hosted in Cairo within 48 hours of the initiation of the initiative’s implementation in order to conclude talks for the consolidation of the ceasefire and resume confidence-building measures between the two sides. Talks shall be held with each of the two sides separately (in accordance with the agreements for the consolidation of de-escalation in Cairo in 2012).
c. Both sides shall commit to refrain from taking any actions aimed at undermining the implementation of the agreements; Egypt shall receive guarantees from both sides of their commitment to implementing what has been agreed and shall follow up on its implementation and engage with either side in the case of any action that impinges on its stability.
http://www.haaretz.com/...