HEIDI COLLINS, ANCHOR: U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan is calling today for a peacekeeping force to serve as a buffer between the Israelis and Palestinians. His plea follows the sudden spasm of violence that has roughly coincided with the launch of the latest peace push. It's been fairly quiet today. But a senior Israeli official says his nation now is engaged in an all-out war against Hamas. CNN's Matthew Chance has the latest from Jerusalem.</s>MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, with more than 50 people dead, it's been a week of bloodshed and shattered hopes for peace in this ongoing conflict. Supporters of the Palestinian militant group Hamas have been (voice-over) out on the streets of Gaza City, burying their dead, very angry scenes on those streets today. (on camera) In the latest Israeli helicopter gunship strike in the city, eight people were killed, including a senior Hamas figure, along with his wife and his child. Hamas, predictably, have vowed to exact revenge on every Israeli as a result of that attack. (voice-over) Emotional scenes also today at the funerals of Israelis killed in a Hamas suicide bomb attack on a crowded Jerusalem bus on Wednesday. Israeli officials saying they will hunt down the Hamas leadership in order, they say, to save the road map to peace process and help get it implemented. (on camera) But that, of course, is raising concerns that a continuing policy of assassination on the part of the Israeli government have coupled with a continuing Hamas and militant group strategy to kill Israelis will only perpetuate the hatred and the recriminations here. As for that road map peace process, well, there are diplomatic contacts still under way. But that U.S.-backed attempt to get all sides to a peaceful resolution in this conflict is in serious trouble, indeed. Matthew Chance, CNN, Jerusalem.
Road Map for Peace in Trouble?