ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)<br/> <br />STORY: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon held meetings on Wednesday to press for a ceasefire amid the deadliest violence in years between Israel and Gaza's Islamist Hamas.<br/> <br />On Wednesday, Israeli forces pounded Gaza, meeting stiff resistance from Hamas and sending thousands of residents fleeing, as Kerry said ceasefire talks had made some progress.<br/> <br />"We have certainly made some steps forward and there's still work to be done. But I'm very appreciative that the secretary-general is making great efforts," Kerry told reporters.<br/> <br />To date, some 645 Palestinians have died in the Gaza offensive. Some 29 Israeli soldiers have been killed so far in the conflagration, including a tank officer shot by a Palestinian sniper overnight. Three civilians have died in rocket attacks out of Gaza, including a foreign laborer hit on Wednesday.
