This is part 139 of a chronology begun by the Journal of Palestine Studies in Spring 1984, and covers events from 16 May to 15 August 2018 on the ground in the occupied Palestinian territories and in the diplomatic sphere, regionally and internationally. With U.S. president Donald Trump9s peace initiative at a standstill, tensions between Hamas and Israel nearly escalated into a fourth major armed conflict since the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in 2005. Egyptian and UN mediation efforts secured a series of cease-fires, but tensions remained high. The Ramallah-based Palestinian leadership resisted Egyptian efforts to add a new Palestinian reconciliation agreement into ongoing backchannel talks between Israel and Hamas over a possible long-term cease-fire agreement. Meanwhile, attendance slowly declined at the weekly mass protests along Gaza9s border, which began in 3/2018 under the Great March of Return banner, as Palestinian youths in Gaza turned increasingly to a new form of resistance: lashing incendiary devices to kites or balloons and flying them across the border fence into southern Israel.

中文翻译：

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冲突与外交更新

这是《巴勒斯坦研究杂志》于 1984 年春季开始的年表的第 139 部分，涵盖了 2018 年 5 月 16 日至 8 月 15 日在巴勒斯坦被占领土以及区域和国际外交领域的实地事件。随着美国总统唐纳德特朗普的和平倡议停滞不前，哈马斯和以色列之间的紧张局势几乎升级为自 2005 年以色列从加沙撤军以来的第四次重大武装冲突。埃及和联合国的调解努力确保了一系列停火，但紧张局势仍然很高. 以拉马拉为基地的巴勒斯坦领导人抵制埃及将新的巴勒斯坦和解协议加入以色列和哈马斯就可能达成的长期停火协议正在进行的秘密谈判的努力。同时，