Hamas may accept Egyptian ceasefire plan

Peroshni Govender, Jerusalem
Defacto Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh in Gaza says Hamas is willing to accept a ceasefire arrangement with Israel brokered by Egypt.

The proposal mediated by Cairo calls for Israel to stop military incursions into Gaza Strip even if there are attacks on the West Bank or Israel. The Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt as border terminals through which supplies enter Gaza should be re-opened.

Hamas has to rein in militants and ensure that they stop firing rockets into towns in the south of Israel. The temporary cease fire will start in Gaza and may be extended to the West Bank.

Siege on Gaza Strip must end
Haniyeh said Hamas will only agree to a ceasefire if it is bi-lateral. Speaking at the inauguration of a new children's hospital in Gaza City he said: "Commitment to a ceasefire depends on the halting of Israeli aggression and ending the crippling siege on the Gaza Strip."

He added: "The ball will be in Israel's court." Haniyeh added that Hamas was prepared to offer Israel a long term truce in return for an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 lines, a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital and for Palestinian refugees to be able to return home.

Hamas does not recognise Israel's right to exist. Israel will not communicate with Hamas because it deems it to be a terrorist organisation. This is the reason that talks were brokered by Egypt.

Israel is expected to announce whether or not it accepts the truce. If it does the decision would have to be taken to Israel's security cabinet. The outcome of a possible truce comes in the wake of fresh fighting between Israel and Gaza. An Israeli incursion with ground and air forces in Khan Younis wounded three Palestinians earlier today, one critically.

Yesterday a suspected militant was killed in Beit Hanoun in southern Gaza. Israel claims it is targeting militants who launch rockets into its borders and carry out operations at border terminals with Gaza.

Abbas to meet with US counterpart
Meanwhile the western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is in Washington to meet US President George W Bush and discuss the peace process with Israel. Israel and Abbas have pledged to reach a deal by January. The process has been bogged down by Israeli transgressions such as settlement activity. Abbas will ask Bush to force Israel to stop building on land that is considered as Palestinian.

While Abbas negotiates peace on the international stage -- at home Palestinian politics are fragmented. Hamas is excluded after seizing control of Gaza in June and the coastal enclave and the West Bank operate as separate entities. Abbas will only reintegrate Hamas when the Islamic movement returns Gaza to his control.