Russia calls for cease-fire between Israelis, Palestinians

MOSCOW, March 26 (Xinhua) -- Russia on Tuesday urged Israel and Palestinians to show restraint and immediately return to a sustainable cease-fire to ward off a new round of the escalation of violence between the two sides.

"Moscow regards with grave concern the next round of dangerous escalation, fraught with the resumption of a large-scale military confrontation, civilian deaths on both sides, and further deterioration of the already deplorable humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

An Israeli army spokesman said Tuesday that Israeli warplanes targeted military facilities and posts that belong to Hamas in the central Gaza Strip.

He said that the ongoing strikes on the Gaza Strip are a response to the firing of a rocket on Monday morning from Gaza into central Israel, where the rocket hit several buildings in northern Tel Aviv. Seven Israelis were injured.

The Palestinian-Israeli negotiating process should be resumed as soon as possible in order to prevent a new spiral of violence and achieve a lasting peace in the Middle East, the statement added.