French, Egyptian leaders mull Gaza

French President Francois Hollande on Sunday called his Egyptian counterpart Mohammad Morsi on ongoing efforts to bring about an Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire. In the phone conversation, Hollande reaffirmed France's total support for Egyptian efforts to fend off more escalation in the Gaza Strip, the French presidency said in a release. He also told Morsi that French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, who was now in the region, was moving to ensure an Israeli-Palestinian ceasefire. Earlier, the French foreign minister met in Tel Aviv Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah as part of efforts for a truce between Israel and Hamas. Fabius told a news conference in Ramallah that Gaza and Israel could not stand this emergency situation and such serious acts. He said France wants to stop escalation and to persuade both sides to reach a ceasefire. France had voiced much concern over growing tension between Israel and Palestinian resistance groups.