WASHINGTON, Nov 21: President Barack Obama assured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday that the United States would use a ceasefire to strengthen Israel’s defence needs, the White Housesaid.
The president also spoke to Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi and “thanked him for his efforts to achieve a sustainable ceasefire and for his personal leadership in negotiating a ceasefire proposal.”
“President Obama and President Morsi agreed on the importance of working towards a more durable solution to the situation in Gaza,” the White House said.
Media reports from the Middle East indicate that the Israeli and Palestinian militants had started implementing a ceasefire by Wednesday afternoon. Separately, a group of human rights activists, including several Jewish Rabbis, urged Israel and the Palestinians to immediately stop all hostilities.
The White House said President Obama commended Prime Minister Netanyahu for “agreeing to the Egyptian ceasefire proposal – which the president recommended the prime minister do – while reiterating that Israel maintains the right to defend itself”.
President Obama assured him that “the United States would use the opportunity offered by a ceasefire to intensify efforts to help Israel address its security needs, especially the issue of the smuggling of weapons and explosives into Gaza,” the statement said.
President Obama returned to Washington after midnight on Tuesday from a weeklong visit to Southeast Asia and re-engaged with leaders in the Middle East early Wednesday.
The US president has been calling the Egyptian and Israeli leaders almost daily since last week when the current crisis began.
“President expressed his appreciation for the Israeli prime minister’s efforts to work with the new Egyptian government to achieve a sustainable ceasefire and a more durable solution to this problem,” the White House said.
He has also praised Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi for working with the Palestinians to de-escalate the situation.
The White House statement also said the president made it clear to the Israeli prime minister that “no country can be expected to tolerate rocket attacks against civilians”.The statement shows the difficulties Mr Obama faces in restoring peace to Gaza without annoying strong pro-Israeli lobbies in the United States.
He said the was committed to seeking additional funding for Iron Dome and other US-Israel missile defence programmes, which provided a protective shield for Israeli civilians against Palestinian missiles.
Meanwhile, some prominent civil rights activists called for an immediate end to Israel’s assault on Gaza. They also urged Palestinian militants to stop firing rockets into Israel.In a joint statement issued in Washington, they reminded the US to help end “Israel’s 45-year occupation of Palestine matters” and also to resolve the issue of Palestinian refugees expelled from their homes in 1948, many of whom now live in Gaza.
Those who signed the letter recently travelled to the West Bank with the Dorothy Cotton Institute’s 2012 Civil and Human Rights Delegation, organised by Interfaith Peace-Builders.
“We cannot and will not be silent. We join our voices with people around the world who are calling for an immediate ceasefire,” the statement said.
“Specifically, we implore President Barack Obama to demand that Israel withdraw its forces from Gaza’s borders; make US aid to Israel conditional upon Israel’s adherence with relevant US and international law.”
“We deplore the firing of rockets on civilian areas in Israel. We also deplore and are outraged by the asymmetry, the disproportionately, of Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, evidenced by the growing number of Palestinian civilian deaths and casualties,” the statement said.