Gaza Situation: Israel-Hamas hammering out ceasefire deal

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02:36

As Israel and Hamas hammer out a long-term ceasefire agreement with the help from Egypt, relative calm between the sides has replaced the recent violence. As Stephanie Freid reports, neither side wanted that situation to escalate. So it now comes down to agreeing on terms.

Days ago Israel and Hamas were on the brink of war. Both sides were following the same pattern they've adhered to for years: Israel strikes Hamas targets. Hamas launches rockets into Israel.

But neither side has the desire - or budget - for a repeat of Israel's 2014 incursion into the Strip that left more than two thousand Gazans dead, thousands more wounded and gutted the infrastructure, further plunging Gaza into humanitarian crisis.

STEPHANIE FREID TEL AVIV "Israel's objective in reaching a ceasefire agreement with Hamas is not to attain a warm, happily-ever-after relationship. It's about minimizing damage."

Egypt is brokering between the sides & negotiations have been ongoing for weeks. What are Israel's ceasefire demands?

What does Hamas get? The incremental plan calls for Israel to ease movement of much-needed supplies into the Strip, support construction of a Gaza airport and possibly issue permits for Gazans to work inside Israel.

If a lasting ceasefire takes hold, it changes the local dynamic. Israel will establish a relationship of sorts with Hamas that is separate from and non-reliant upon the Palestinian Authority.

DR. KOBI MICHAEL, POLITICAL ANALYST ISRAEL INSTITUTE FOR NATIONAL SECURITY "Maybe there will be a Palestinian Federation that will be composed of two states - one in the Gaza Strip that will be ruled by Hamas and the other one in the West Bank that will be ruled by Fatah."

But that speculation is better left to a future date long after a ceasefire has been agreed upon, implemented and adhered to. Stephanie Freid, CGTN, Tel Aviv.