Sustainable plan needed

In recent days, regional and international powers have ramped up their diplomatic efforts to end the confrontation in the Middle East. Concrete proposals for stopping Israel's military offensive and Gaza's rocket fire have finally been put forward. The military offensive against the Palestinian civilian population has become a de facto war. That much is clear from a glance at the number of victims: nearly two-thirds of the 1,000 Palestinians killed have been innocent women and children.

There's no doubt that Israel has a right to defend itself from Hamas' rocket fire. That's especially true given that the untargeted and technologically primitive rockets are more likely to hit Israeli civilians rather than military targets. Rocket attacks against ordinary people are always a crime that should be punished.

But Israel's reaction to such attacks must be both proportionate and lawful. It should be evident that the Israeli army's attacks on private residences, hospitals, and even UN schools are disproportionate and difficult to bring into accord with international law. Looking back at the seemingly endless military offensives launched against armed Hamas militias shows that they have done little to foster security for Israeli citizens.

A political process is necessary

An immediate end to the violence must be the first goal of any diplomatic effort. Nonetheless, a mere ceasefire will not be enough to end the violence and prevent future confrontations.

More importantly, efforts must be made to return to a sound political approach. Given the hardened fronts at the moment, that may seem difficult to imagine, but it's the only real possibility of getting beyond the war. That means: Israel, Egypt and international mediators need to come up with a solution package to ensure a lasting end to the bloodshed.

As part of that process, Hamas' demands must be taken seriously - particularly for an end to the double blockade of Gaza by Israel and Egypt as well as for economic and political opportunities for Gaza residents. For Hamas' leadership, a return to the status quo is out of the question - living completely cut off in the impoverished coastal strip is equivalent to a gradual death. The group's demands are now supported by Palestinians as a whole, including President Mahmoud Abbas.

At the moment, the two sides' conditions for a final ceasefire are a long way apart. Both seem to want to continue fighting. There's no other option than modifying the plan laid out by US Secretary of State John Kerry in such a way that it not only calls for an immediate stop to all violence and a return to the ceasefire conditions agreed in November 2012, but such that it also includes international guarantees from the US and the EU that these agreements will be maintained.

Without these political prospects, any attempts to stop the violence will likely prove fruitless or last for only a short time.