Summary
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Friday that he had not yet reached a deal between Israel and Hamas to call a seven-day humanitarian truce in the Gaza war but is continuing work.
Kerry's comments at a Friday evening press conference in Cairo closing days of shuttling between the Egyptian capital, Jerusalem and the West Bank trying to work out a week-long pause in fighting that has killed more than 820 Palestinians and 38 people in Israel.
Gaza fighting continued alongside the truce efforts. Israeli airstrikes hit more than 80 sites in Gaza, while militants in the tiny Mediterranean strip fired 50 rockets at Israel, the army said.
And unrest sparked by the conflict intensified in the West Bank, where five Palestinians were killed during protests against the Israeli operation in Gaza.
Kerry's comments reflected the difficulty of reaching even a brief halt in fighting, with Israel determined to destroy Hamas military tunnels from Gaza and rocket fire.
Israeli troops have so far destroyed about half of the 31 underground passages discovered during the Gaza operation.
In Israel, 38 people have been killed since July 8, including 35 soldiers, two Israeli civilians and a Thai worker.
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