Berlin - German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown issued a joint statement Saturday to the governments of Israel and Egypt supporting efforts for a lasting ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

According to the statement, the three EU countries "declared our readiness to take a series of measures that would contribute to the end of weapons smuggling into Gaza."

The three also expressed their "hope that a lasting ceasefire in Gaza would be followed by a new dynamic for an abiding peace in the Middle East."

Israel is in the fourth week of a military campaign against the Palestinian militant group Hamas, currently ruling in the Gaza Strip. Egypt has been acting as a mediator toward a ceasefire. (dpa)