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France and Egypt announced Tuesday an initiative to stop hostilities in the Gaza Strip, hours after an Israeli shelling near a school in the UN left at least 30 dead.

In remarks before the Security Council of the UN in New York, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner failed to disclose details of the plan because of the truce, he said, the presidents of France and Egypt are awaiting Israel's response.


Israeli authorities in Jerusalem declined to immediately comment on the announcement, which was made through diplomatic efforts of U.S. and other countries to resolve the conflict between Israel and the Islamist Hamas militia that has killed at least 600 people in 11 days .

The president-elect of the United States, Barack Obama, on Tuesday put an end to their silence on the crisis and said that "the loss of civilian life in Gaza and Israel is a source of deep concern to me." Did not want to go beyond reiterating that the United States now has a president, who is George W. Bush.


The Israeli army said it had fired at the school because of Hamas fighters had fired from there, and accused Hamas of using "cynical" to civilians as human shields. Several witnesses confirmed the Israeli version that had launched guerrilla attacks from the area. The bombing of the school was the most bloody episode in the ground assault that began on Saturday.

Hours earlier, New York, UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, said it was "totally unacceptable" the Israeli bombardment on the premises of the organization. Israel has attacked three schools, including girls reached the site on Tuesday, and a medical center of Palestinian refugees.


Ban also said it was "equally unacceptable" that the militia to carry out actions endangering Palestinian civilians.

Some 15,000 Palestinians are crowded into the 23 schools in the United Nations in Gaza because their homes were destroyed or fleeing the violence. The United Nations gave the armed forces of Israel positioning satellite coordinates to all schools.


The army refused to comment on the matter, but said Hamas often use schools, mosques and civilian areas to protect themselves. The government spokesman, Mark Reguev, said he hoped the response of the army.

Despite complaints by international civilian deaths and diplomatic efforts to forge a truce, Israel said its offensive would continue until they achieve peace in its southern region, where the Islamists launch rockets against civilians.


A Palestinian rocket, one of two dozen launched from Gaza on Tuesday, wounding an Israeli soldier. Since the attack in the territory with air strikes have killed two Israelis, including a soldier.

A United Nations official called for an investigation into the death of civilians. At least a hundred civilians have died in the conflict, according to Palestinian authorities and the UN.


Meanwhile, Venezuela expelled the ambassador of Israel in opposition to Israeli military actions. The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry informed in a statement that it was "reaffirming its mission of peace and its call for respect for international law."

Regardless of the calls for a ceasefire, Israeli soldiers are closer to major population centers in Gaza. A total of 70 Palestinians were killed Tuesday in fighting, of which it has been confirmed that two were militiamen, said authorities in Gaza. The attack also left the school 55 wounded.


"There is no safe place in Gaza. All are terrorized and traumatized," said John Ging, the highest level official of the UN in the region after the first attack against a school in the world body left three dead.

The physician Bassam Abu Warda, director of the Kamal Radwan hospital said 36 people died on Tuesday at school, while the UN said 30 dead.


"I brought many women and children," said Ghanem Fares, another official of the health center. "Many of the wounded were mutilated and killed several of the pieces made."

Majed Hamdan, the AP photographer, said that arrived at the scene shortly after the attacks and saw several children dead.

"I saw men and women, parents, punching his face with suffering, shouting, many of them collapsed on the floor. They knew that their children were dead. In the morgue, most of the dead appeared to be children. the hospital had not enough space for the wounded, "he said.

He added that there were traces of five explosions, all in the same area on the outskirts of the school.

An Israeli official said Palestinian militants fired from the school yard of the UN. The source asked not to be identified because the army still had no official statement about what happened. He added that the soldiers returned fire and there were several explosions, allegedly by the ammunition stored there.

The International Red Cross also reported that a dispatch of ambulances was attacked, leaving one worker injured.

"I ask political leaders here in the region and the world to react and stop this," said Ging, the largest hospital in Gaza. "They are responsible for these deaths."

The food agency of the international body has stopped its activities in the northern Gaza Strip, because it is feared that the Palestinians risked their lives trying to reach the distribution centers for food.