Gaza aid workers 'hopeful' for ceasefire but fear intensified bombing before any deal

Source: Christian Aid

Palestinian partners of UK aid agency Christian Aid have said they are "hopeful but also afraid," as ceasefire talks between Hamas and Israel continue.

Katie Roxburgh, Christian Aid's Programme Manager for Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, spoke this morning with colleagues who are delivering aid across the Gaza Strip.

She reported: "Our partners are hopeful for a deal, and happy - of course - that the suffering families are having to endure may ease. But they told me they are also afraid, because the last moments before a ceasefire is agreed are brutal due to intensified bombing.

"A deal cannot come soon enough. It would offer Palestinians in Gaza respite from the relentless bombardment, displacement and deprivation they have endured for the last 15 months and an opportunity to release all hostages and illegally held detainees.

"However, sustainable peace is not possible until the illegal occupation of Gaza and the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) ends and Palestinians and Israelis are treated as equals."