Israeli strike on Gaza kills 7, unrest spreads to West Bank

An Israeli air raid in Gaza City has killed at least seven Palestinians in the deadliest single strike since the battle with Gaza's militant Hamas rulers erupted earlier this week

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- An Israeli air raid in Gaza City killed at least seven Palestinians early Saturday in the deadliest single strike since the battle with Gaza's militant Hamas rulers erupted earlier this week. Both sides pressed for an advantage as cease-fire efforts gathered strength. The latest outburst of violence began in Jerusalem and has spread across the region, with Jewish-Arab clashes and rioting in mixed cities of Israel. There were also widespread Palestinian protests Friday in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli forces shot and killed 11 people. The spiraling violence has raised fears of a new Palestinian “intifada,” or uprising at a time when there have been no peace talks in years. Palestinians were set to mark Nakba day Saturday, when they commemorate the estimated 700,000 people who fled or were driven from their homes in what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation, raising the possibility of more unrest. U.S. diplomat Hady Amr arrived in the region on Friday as part of Washington's efforts to de-escalate the conflict and the U.N. Security Council was set to meet Sunday. But Israel turned down an Egyptian proposal for a one-year truce that Gaza's militant Hamas rulers had accepted, an Egyptian official said Friday on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations.