Israelis and Palestinians trade mortar fire as talks continue

Israelis and Palestinians have traded mortar fire in the Gaza Strip, while the two sides also held high-level political talks.

The Palestinians fired four mortar shells on the Jewish settlement of Netzarim in central Gaza in the early hours of Wednesday, but no one was hurt.

The army responded to the source of the fire with several mortar rounds of its own, targeting a nearby Palestinian security base.

Meanwhile, Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres met two senior Palestinian officials, Planning Minister Nabil Shaath and negotiator Saeb Erekat, in Athens, Greece.

But Mr Erekat warned against raising expectations. "We have different points of views in the ways we see things on the ground," he said.

A three-way meeting involving security officials from both sides, along with the US, is expected to be held in the near future, possibly on the border between Israel and Gaza.

Also, three members of Israel's parliament met Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in the West Bank city of Ramallah and described the talks as encouraging.

"It is very important to have a solution under the political umbrella to achieve a reduction in the violence," said Naomi Chazan, a member of Israel's dovish Meretz party.

The recent flurry of political activity is focused on the immediate problem of halting the bloodshed, and not on the collapsed peace talks. It is the most active day of Israeli-Palestinian political contacts since Ariel Sharon came to power in early March.

The prime minister has insisted that he will not open any peace negotiations until the more than six months of violence ends.