Finland for immediate stop of violence in Gaza

Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto on Friday underscored the need for ending Israeli operation in Gaza and rocket fires to Israel, said the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

Haavisto also said that all parties must respect international humanitarian law, said the ministry in a twitter post.

“Immediate ceasefire needed to end Israeli operations in Gaza and rockets to Israel. All parties must respect int. humanitarian law. Political horizon urgently needed to end the spiral of violence. Civilians, including children, are suffering,” the ministry wrote in the twitter, quoting Haavisto as saying.

The Gaza-Israel conflict has begun on Tuesday after a surprising Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip killed three senior PIJ leaders, reported Xinhua.

Since then, the joint chamber of military operations, which comprises several Palestinian factions' armed wings, including the PIJ and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), has exchanged fire with the Israeli army, leaving 33 Palestinians and one Israeli killed by Friday, according to official statistics.

Egypt, Qatar, and the UN are mediating a ceasefire between Israel and the Hamas-led militant groups, including the PIJ, but fail to reach an agreement on ending this round of tension, said Xinhua, quoting Palestinian sources.