let's talk about it with daniel shapiro joining us live from tel aviv. mr.sador thanks for joining us. i know we have a delay in our satellite between you and me. but tell us what the u.s. reaction is. i assume the u.s. is familiar with the egyptian proposal, the israelis say they're taking it seriously. so far, the hamas group, mr. hamdan is saying it's a joke. what does the united states believe? >> well, wolf, i think i'll let my colleagues in washington give our first official response to what the egyptian foreign ministry published. let me tell you this. since the beginning of this conflict, the united states has taken the position, number one, this has been caused by the actions of a terrorist organization, hamas, firing rockets and missiles against civilian populations in israel which we've condemned. number two is, israel had the right of self defense and we supported that right of self-defense. number three, it's caused hardship and suffering for civilians on both sides. israelis have had to run repeatedly to bomb shelters. certainly there have been