Mideast talks continue

ISRAELI and Palestinian leaders met yesterday to discuss ways to stop militants from firing rockets and mortars in Gaza, heading off the possibility of a large-scale Israeli invasion to curb the surging violence.

The decision came as the top Palestinian security chief ordered a deployment of troops along the Gaza-Israel frontier to stop the attacks - the first concrete steps to rein in militants since the election of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.

Israel broke off contacts with Abbas’ government after a January 13 attack on a vital Gaza-Israel crossing point killed six Israelis. But the ban came under criticism from the United States, the United Nations, Egypt and Jordan.