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November 19, 2012 | | EXCLUSIVE You've probably seen it by now. It’s the most shared picture in the history of Twitter and Facebook, with more than 816,000 retweets and 4.5 million "likes" since Election Day. But the image that came to symbolize Obama’s reelection was chosen on the spur of the moment by an exhausted campaign staffer. The Daily Beast's Brian Ries has the inside scoop on how the most viral photo ever came to be. Battle Israel says it is prepared to send troops into Gaza, though it prefers a diplomatic end to the crisis that would prevent Palestinian rocket fire from the area. A senior Israeli official close to Benjamin Netanyahu said, "Israel is prepared and has taken steps, and is ready for a ground incursion which will deal severely with the Hamas military machine. We would prefer to see a diplomatic solution that would guarantee the peace for Israel's population in the south. If that is possible, then a ground operation would no longer be required.” Israel has called-up 75,000 military reservists and has already mobilized about half of that. Khaled Meshaal, the exiled leader of Hamas, said that while a truce is possible, Hamas would not accept Israel’s current demands. ASIA PIVOT On a remarkable trip to Rangoon that buoyed ordinary citizens, Obama praised Burma’s democracy efforts, predicting further thawing in relations—but avoided endorsing the government and told the generals they must stay the course. The Daily Beast's Lennox Samuels reports. IT'S REALLY BACK The housing market has entered the stage of full-on recovery, according to the National Association of Realtors’ latest reading of the market. In October, existing home sales were up 10.9 percent from October 2011, while prices were up 11.1 percent. Compared with a year ago, the number of homes for sale in October 2012 was off 22 percent. To recap: inventory way down, prices and volume up significantly. GAZA STRIP More Palestinian civilians died Monday as Israel continued strikes against rocket-firing Hamas militants in Gaza. Forty-two people were injured in an airstrike that hit two houses, a Gaza health official said, killing four people, including two children. At least 11 civilians died in a Sunday strike against a two-story home that came after Israel said it would pursue attacks against the residences of Hamas activists. Most of the 11 victims were women and children. Fifty civilians are thought to be among the 87 Palestinians killed over six days of fighting. | | 
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