Following the U.S. State Department's call for an immediate - yet "durable" - ceasefire in Gaza, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino told reporters Wednesday, "We want to get to a durable and lasting ceasefire as soon as possible. And if that is immediate, then we would certainly welcome that."

Perino stated that the ceasefire should include three elements: a cessation of rocket attacks by Hamas into Israel; an end to smuggling through tunnels into Gaza and a return to the 2005 access agreement which allows open border crossings. "Those are the three things that we would like to get to in a cease-fire, and that's what Secretary Rice will be working towards today," Perino added.

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