Campaign photo of Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, the Egyptian Defense Minister who resigned to run for president. Photo: El-Sisi Campaign.

JNS.org – U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry have headed to the Egyptian capital of Cairo to negotiate a new cease-fire proposal for Israel and Hamas.

U.S. President Barack Obama has indicated that Kerry will propose a cease-fire deal with conditions similar to those of the truce reached between Israel and Hamas to end their conflict in November 2012.

Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said Monday that Israel will continue its offensive “as long as necessary” to stop rocket attacks by Hamas and terrorist infiltration from Gaza. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said in a text message that “the resistance (Hamas) will not respond to any pressure.”

Meanwhile, a senior Egyptian official on Sunday accused Hamas of neglecting Palestinian citizens after officials claimed that one of the terrorist group’s leaders, Khaled Mashaal, had been invited for Israeli-Palestinian cease-fire talks in Cairo.

“This is yet another lie in a string of lies made by Hamas leaders, who continue to live comfortable lives abroad while abandoning the Palestinian citizens who are being killed by the day and paying with their lives for the political and military escapades of the organization,” the official said, according to Israel Hayom.

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhum shot back with criticism of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi.

“Egypt is not fulfilling its required role, and instead of negotiating, it should join the Palestinians in the war against Israel—otherwise the whole region will be in danger. Hamas will not surrender or wave a white flag. We will fight until the last drop of blood in Gaza. If the Zionist enemy wants to end this battle, it must immediately stop the war and respond to the demands of the Palestinian organizations,” he said.