• Listen to this segment with Noura Erakat

• Listen to the entire program with Sonali Kolhatkar

A new 72 hour ceasefire has begun in Gaza this morning as Israeli and Palestinian negotiators met in neighboring Egypt. This latest truce comes on the heels of several others that have not stuck. At least 7 Palestinians were killed over the weekend.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the press over the weekend that the heavy death toll among Palestinian civilians was “justified,” and “proportionate.” He then held Hamas responsible for provoking the attack.

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, with an eye toward the US Presidency, echoed Netanyahu’s sentiments, blaming Hamas, and even going as far as to say that international scrutiny of Israel was partly rooted in anti-semitism.

Meanwhile Gazans are slowly returning to find tens of thousands of homes destroyed. Norway has announced it intends to call a conference of international donors soon to offer aid to the occupied population.

GUEST: Noura Erakat, human rights attorney and activist, and an Assistant Professor at George Mason University. She has taught international human rights law in the Middle East at Georgetown University since Spring 2009 and is the Co-Editor of Jadaliyya.