Israeli troops to withdraw for election

ISRAEL will withdraw its troops from Palestinian towns for 72 hours during next month’s Palestinian presidential election, Israeli Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz said yesterday, signalling that a deadly weekend attack on an Israel army post was not derailing fledgling peace efforts.

Mr Mofaz also said it was in Israel’s interest to co-ordinate next year’s planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip with the Palestinians - a marked departure from Israel’s initial insistence to act unilaterally.

The Islamic militant group Hamas and gunmen with ties to the ruling Fatah movement claimed responsibility for Sunday’s attack on an army outpost on the Gaza-Egypt border. The militants detonated 1.5 tonnes of explosives, killing five soldiers and wounding five. Hamas said it had dug a 730-metre tunnel in four months to reach the outpost.