A leading House Democrat from New York visiting Israel says he is cautiously optimistic that a temporary cease-fire will hold.
But U.S. Rep. Steve Israel tells The Associated Press in a telephone interview Tuesday that his hopes are tempered by the fact that previous agreements to halt the fighting have collapsed.
The Long Island lawmaker is leading a bipartisan delegation of nine representatives touring Israel this week.
Their scheduled meeting Tuesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been postponed to Wednesday.
The group arrived in Tel Aviv Sunday. Israel is leader of the Democratic campaign effort in the fall.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
