Diplomats note progress toward Gaza cease-fire

Israel, Hamas battle on as obstacles linger

Palestinians inspected destroyed homes after an Israeli military strike yesterday in Gaza City. Israeli air strikes continued overnight against Palestinian targets along the Gaza Strip. (Abid Katib/ Getty Images)

JERUSALEM - Diplomats said yesterday they were closer to bringing about a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, but fighting in the coastal territory persisted as the Palestinian death toll in the 19-day war passed 1,000.

Delegates from Hamas, meeting in Cairo with Egyptian mediators, said that the Islamist movement was willing to agree to a truce with Israel but that obstacles remained. Points of contention included whether a cease-fire would be temporary, when Israel would reopen checkpoints and who might patrol Gaza's border with Egypt to prevent smugglers from resupplying Hamas with weapons, officials involved in the talks said.

Details remained under wraps, but diplomats in the region said they were pushing for an immediate cease-fire, to be followed by further talks on border security and other issues.

Israel said it would send an emissary to Cairo today to hear details of a truce proposal that Egypt and Hamas have hammered out in recent days. Egyptian officials expressed optimism that a deal was near.

"We're working with Hamas, and we're working with the Israeli side," Hossam Zaki, an Egyptian Foreign Ministry official, told the BBC. "We hope to reach an outcome soon."

Israeli officials, however, were more cautious. They said Israel would not withdraw from Gaza unless Hamas first agreed to a long-term cease-fire. "Israel will not accept a situation where Hamas gets a temporary period of quiet just to rearm and regroup and that ends with further rocket barrages on Israel," Mark Regev, a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, told Reuters.

Disagreements also persist within Israel's political leadership. Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni favor a quick end to the fighting, arguing that the war has dealt Hamas a severe setback and that there is little further to be gained, according to Israeli media reports. But Olmert, whose term ends next month, has resisted.

European diplomats said the framework for a truce was emerging but predicted that it could take days to win a final agreement. They said they were pressing for a deal before next Tuesday, when Barack Obama is scheduled to be sworn in as president in Washington.

"My perception is we are very close to reaching a cease-fire," Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos said in the West Bank city of Ramallah after meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. "They are very close, but still there is some work to be done."

While some Hamas delegates hinted at a breakthrough, others took a harder line. Salah al- Bardawil, a member of the Hamas negotiating team, said he doubted that Israel would be willing to withdraw its tanks and troops. Egypt is mediating the talks because Israel refuses to speak directly with Hamas, which it considers a terrorist organization.

Meantime, Israeli forces and Hamas fighters continued to battle. Health officials in Gaza said more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed and 4,700 injured since Israel began its offensive with air strikes Dec. 27. A senior Israeli military official estimated Tuesday that a "few hundred" of the dead have been Hamas fighters.

Thirteen Israelis have died, including three civilians killed by Hamas rocket fire and 10 soldiers. Fighters in Gaza shot 14 more rockets into southern Israel yesterday, police said, but no injuries were reported.

The Israeli military confirmed it had turned away an Iranian ship that was approaching Gaza. Iran is a key backer of Hamas. Iranian officials said the ship was loaded with humanitarian goods, which it would try to deliver to an Egyptian port instead.