"The deliberate targeting Israeli civilians in Jerusalem, the unintended but no less lethal shooting at Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip, and the escalating exchange of missiles on both sides of the Strip's border, might turn out to be milestone events, marking a plunge back into a boundless vortex of bloodshed" said former Knesset Member Uri Avnery, Gush Shalom activist.

"It is no use to utter condemnations and vow to pursue the assailants, without an understanding that the escalation of the recent days is a direct result of the void created by the blocking of the diplomatic channels. When a long time of no progress in negotiations, not even a semblance of an honest attempt to get closer to ending the occupation, the vacuum gets filled by extremist and violent acts on both sides.

Already for a long time we have seen this on the Israeli side – with settlements expanding and manifestations of outright racism, not only in inflammatory statements by rabbis and public figures but also in acts of legislation in the Knesset. Evidently, also on the Palestinian side there is an increasing frustration at the political stalemate, whose painful consequences we are witnessing now."

Avnery added that there must be an effort to reach long-term solutions in order to put an end to escalation: "Both sides must take responsibility for the situation and stop immediately the cycle of bloodshed. The Government of Israel must be wary of the demagogic and irresponsible elements - even within the government iteslf – who call for a new full-scale war in Gaza, as though the lesson of 2009 had not already demonstrated that this would be no solution at all, nothing but terrible bloodshed and a plethora of war crimes.

Also a 'limited' escalation with the death toll amounting to dozens 'only', follwed by a relative calm until the next flare-up, is no solution and offers no hope to anyone. There was and is only one viable way forward: ending the occupation, and reaching a peace agreement between the independent and sovereign Israel and the independent and sovereign Palestine.

An integral part of that solution is an end to the siege on Gaza, which is but a continuation of the occupation by other means. The people of Gaza, like those anywhere else in the world, have the right to go back and forth from their country, to export and import according to their economic needs and communicate freely with the outside world, without needing having to ask anybody's permission.

Also, it's time to put an end to the pernicious and short-sighted policy of encouraging division and internal strife among Palestinians. The demand for Palestinian Unity and an end to the conflict between Fatah and Hamas, for whose sake young Palestinians go out into the streets in Ramallah and Gaza alike, is not only a Palestinian interest. It is also an Israeli interest. To reach an agreement which could be actually implemented, the State of Israel should encourage - rather than hinder - the establishment of a Unity Government among Palestinians, representing the entire Palestinian people".