UK MPs call for talks with Hamas

The UN feeds 650,000 people in the Gaza Strip every day A UK parliamentary committee has called for dialogue with Hamas, as a UN report says poverty has reached an unprecedented high in the Gaza Strip. Gaza's economy has been hit hard by an Israeli embargo tightened when the militant group took control last year. Major world powers refuse to speak to Hamas unless it recognises Israel. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said 52% of Gaza households are living in poverty, and unemployment there has topped 45%. The House of Commons International Development Committee said in a report on Gaza that the current truce between Hamas and Israel, agreed on 19 June, "offers the international community an opportunity to begin a dialogue with Hamas". The aim of the talks should be to move the group towards accepting principles... [read full story]