Washington: Stating that the US is working hard at trying to deal with the Middle East crisis, Secretary of State John Kerry has expressed hope of finding a "magic formula" to bring an end to the violence in Gaza.

"We are still working hard at trying to deal with the issue of the crisis in the Middle East. We want to be able to find a way to get to a table to discuss the underlying issues which are real and impactful on everybody and on the region," said Kerry. Kerry has just returned from the Middle East and from Paris, where he had a series of discussions aimed at de-escalating the conflict, ending the rocket and tunnel attacks against Israeli civilians, and easing the suffering of innocent people in Gaza, in Israel, and in the West Bank.