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Obama calls for "unconditional" release of Israeli soldier

WASHINGTON, Aug 1 (KUNA) -- US President Barack Obama stressed Friday that the captured Israeli soldier needs to be "unconditionally" released "as soon as possible" if Hamas is "serious about trying to resolve this situation." Speaking to reporters, Obama reiterated "I have been very clear throughout this crisis that Israel has a right to defend itself.
"Now at the same time, we have also been clear that innocent civilians in Gaza caught in the crossfire have to weigh on our conscience, and we have to do more to protect them," he added.
He affirmed that "a ceasefire was one way in which we could stop the killing, to step back and to try to resolve some of the underlying issues that have been building up over quite some time." He stressed that Israel committed to the 72-hour ceasefire "and it was violated," and that "trying to put that back together is going to be challenging, but we will continue to make those efforts." "It's important to note that we have and I have unequivocally condemned Hamas and the Palestinian factions that were responsible for killing two Israeli soldiers and abducting a third almost minutes after a cease-fire had been announced," he noted.
Meanwhile, Obama praised Secretary of State John Kerry for his efforts, saying "he has been persistent. He has worked very hard. He has endured on many occasions really unfair criticism simply to try to get to the point where the killing stops and the underlying issues about Israel's security but also the concerns of Palestinians in Gaza can be addressed.
"We're going to keep working towards that. It's going to take some time. I think it's going to be very hard to put a cease-fire back together again if Israelis and the international community can't feel confident that Hamas can follow through on a cease-fire commitment," Obama remarked.
He stressed "it's not particularly relevant whether a particular leader in Hamas ordered this abduction. The point is, is that when they sign on to a cease-fire, they're claiming to speak for all the Palestinian factions. And if they don't have control of them and just moments after a cease-fire is signed, you have Israeli soldiers being killed and captured, then it's hard for the Israelis to feel confident that a cease-fire can actually be honored". (end) si.hb