Russia welcomes Israel-Hamas ceasefire, says humanitarian pauses are only way forward

Russia welcomed a ceasefire agreement in the Israel-Palestinian conflict on Wednesday and said humanitarian pauses were the only way to make progress towards a settlement. Russia also angered Israel by hosting a Hamas delegation in Moscow last month.

Russia welcomed a ceasefire agreement in the Israel-Palestinian conflict on Wednesday and said humanitarian pauses were the only way to make progress towards a settlement. Israel's government and Hamas agreed earlier on Wednesday to a ceasefire in Gaza for at least four days, to allow in aid and release at least 50 hostages captured by militants in exchange for at least 150 Palestinians jailed in Israel.

"This is the first good news from Gaza in a long time," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. "Russia and most countries were calling for a truce and humanitarian pauses, because only on the basis of such pauses can the contours of future attempts at a sustainable settlement be built."

Russia has longstanding ties with Israel, Hamas and other leading players in the Middle East including Iran. Since the start of the conflict, President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly emphasised the suffering of Palestinian citizens, called the crisis a failure of U.S. policy and urged Israel to show restraint. Russia also angered Israel by hosting a Hamas delegation in Moscow last month.