Hamas Makes Its Demands

With air strikes still smoldering in the Gaza Strip, Hamas made its demands for peace: no more targeted killings and no more blockade on Gaza, Ynet News reports. A Palestinian delegation led by Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal gave the demands today to Egyptian officials in Cairo, according to an Islamic Jihad-linked website. Hamas also asked Egypt to allow the passage of goods and people through the Rafah border. Meanwhile, a Hamas spokesman told reporters that more Arab officials will be visiting the Gaza Strip. (Egypt's prime minister visited yesterday.)

With Arab allies rallying around Hamas, the Cairo-based Arab League held an emergency meeting—in which officials criticized Israel but voiced support for Egypt's attempts to broker a "long-term" Israeli-Palestinian truce, the Jerusalem Post reports. The normally toothless league is also considering sending its chief to head a delegation to Gaza. Egypt's president, Mohamed Morsi, furthered today's diplomatic action by meeting with Turkey's prime minister and the ruling emir of Qatar, signaling their support for Hamas, the Washington Post reports. (More Gaza stories.)