John Kerry files to Tel Aviv to push for cease-fire despite FAA ban

TEL AVIV, Israel – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has flown into Israel’s main airport despite a Federal Aviation Administration ban as he continues to push a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.

Kerry was planning to meet Wednesday with Israel’s prime minster, the Palestinian Authority’s president and the United Nations chief in a daylong visit to Jerusalem and Ramallah.

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READ MORE: Air Canada cancels flight, FAA restricts US flights to Tel Aviv

Kerry flew into Tel Aviv on a military jet a day after the FAA banned commercial flights into Ben-Gurion Airport. The FAA imposed the restriction after a Hamas rocket landed within a mile of the airport on Tuesday.

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki (SAH’-kee) said Wednesday’s meetings would continue Kerry’s efforts to get Hamas and Israel to declare a truce after more than two weeks of fighting in the Gaza Strip.