Secretary General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit has welcomed the ceasefire declared between the Palestinians and Israelis, highlighting in this regard the Egyptian initiative that constituted the basis for the agreement to end hostilities and begin a truce. In a statement on Friday, Aboul Gheit noted that Egypt's efforts and its solidarity with Gaza have had their immense contributions towards mitigating the losses and ending the Israeli attacks on the coastal enclave, adding that the recent confrontations in the occupied territories have re-emphasized the Palestinians' rejection of the Israeli occupation and its crimes which can be elevated to the status of "crimes against humanity". The Secretary General also explained that the declaration of truce in Gaza does not in any way mean that Israel should be excused for the crimes it has committed during the recent aggression in which children and women constituted half of the death toll in addition to the massive destruction of the infrastructure in the besieged coastal enclave. Aboul Gheit called for holding Israel accountable for these crimes and for pursuing all perpetrators in the International Criminal Court which has announced that the Palestinian occupied territories fall within its jurisdiction. The Secretary General also said that the ceasefire declared is the first step towards ending the escalation, calling for breaking the status quo in the occupied territories and for more intensified international efforts to re-launch peace negotiations on the basis of the international law and the relevant UN resolutions which can end the Israeli occupation and lead to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
