Fragile Israel-Hamas Cease-fire Met with Cheers, Criticism

Biden said he also promised the Israeli leader that the United States would replenish Israel's Iron Dome rocket interception system.

The two sides continued to trade blows before the cease-fire, with Israeli air sirens warning of incoming Hamas rockets, and an airstrike in Gaza heard by a Reuters reporter.

UN emergency meeting

Earlier, at the U.N., Israel's ambassador said his government wanted a cease-fire "but only after significantly degrading Hamas' terror machine."

"This is not a war between Israel and the people of Gaza," Ambassador Gilad Erdan said.

"This is not a war between Israel and the Palestinians. This is a war only between Israel and Hamas. We will never apologize for defending our citizens, even if some countries here might be happy to see a greater number of dead Jews."

FILE - Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, is pictured in Jerusalem, Dec. 11, 2018.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki told reporters at the U.N., where he participated in a meeting on the situation, that "the carnage, the aggression, the attack, will stop. It is good that the Palestinian people, the more than 2 million of them (in Gaza), will be able to go to sleep tonight knowing that they will have a brighter tomorrow. But that's not enough, that's not enough at all."

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The Palestinian foreign minister said the issues that triggered this latest round of violence — the situation for Muslims at their holy sites in Jerusalem and the evictions of Palestinian families in parts of the city — must be addressed.

FILE - Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki attends a meeting in Moscow, Russia, (5/5/2021)

The Biden administration had blocked efforts at the U.N. Security Council to issue a condemnation of the fighting and call for a truce, drawing criticism from some countries. All 15 council members must agree on such statements.