Irish Examiner view: The least we can hope for is a ceasefire 

Middle East: Minister Coveney insists Israel must abide by international law

A member of Israeli bomb squad looks at burning cars that were set on fire by a missile fired from the Gaza Strip, in the southern Israeli town of Ashkelon. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

The utterly depressing truth about the violence that is again unfolding in the Middle East is that it is all too familiar. If one compared reports of heavy fighting in Gaza in 2009 and 2014 to the present day, many of the details would be the same. Civilian deaths. Families fleeing homes reduced to rubble. Rockets fired by Hamas and disproportionate response by Israel.

That is evident again in the latest casualty list: At least 10 on the Israeli side, including two children, and at least 188
Palestinians, including more than 50 children. There is, however, a reason to think that this time the situation is even worse because, for the first time, violence is erupting between Jewish and Arab citizens in Israel’s mixed cities.