UN chief demands restoration of peace process as Israel, Hamas hold fire in Gaza

Ban has visited several countries and talked with top officials that he said "can make a difference."

Ban set feet on Egypt on Wednesday, the first stop of his one-week tour, where he held talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, reviewing the latest development of the Gaza crisis and discussed an Egyptian initiative aimed at putting an end to the conflict in Gaza.

In Israel, Ban renewed his call for an immediate ceasefire and said in a joint press conference with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni that the death toll in Gaza had reached an "unbearable point," and it was his understanding in talks with regional leaders in Egypt, Jordan and Israel that the fighting in Gaza was coming to a close.

He also asserted that Israeli citizens had the right to live without fear of rockets, so the rocket attacks from Gaza must stop permanently and Hamas' use of private homes and civilian institutions was "unacceptable."

When talking with Turkish President Abdullah Gul on Friday, Ban said he was pleased with the active policy pursued by Turkey in the region, adding that the country should maintain its efforts to prevent a likely separation in the Arab world.

Turkey has been Israel's main regional ally since the two countries signed a military accord in 1996, but the onslaught in Gaza has unleashed anger in Muslim-dominant Turkey.

On Saturday in Lebanon, Ban called on both sides in the conflict to stop fighting first and work out the details later in a bid to end what he called an "unprecedented" level of violence.

Weeks of violence killed over 1,000 people, many of them women and children, and wounded over 5,000 others, not to mention the widespread destruction and tremendous suffering for Gaza's 1.5 million Palestinian residents.

He noted the similarities between Gaza conflict and the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, and urged all parties in Lebanon and Israel to continue to show restraint during this tense time in the region.

The extensive tour has also taken the UN chief to Jordan, Palestinian territories and Syria.

Ban, to wrap up his tour, said he was planning to send an assessment team to check out the humanitarian needs in the Gaza Strip.

Editor:Zhang Pengfei