Middle East peace efforts intensify

US and Egyptian mediators intensified efforts to persuade militant Palestinians to agree to suspend attacks against Israelis in a bid to salvage a US-backed peace plan threatening to collapse under the weight of renewed violence.

For the first time, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon indicated that he would accept a truce. Up to now he has insisted on a crackdown on the militant groups, including the arrest of their leaders.

After meeting leaders of the violent Islamic Hamas yesterday, Egyptian intelligence officials were to convene a meeting of all Palestinian factions in Gaza today, said Palestinian official Zakaria al-Agha.

He was hopeful that a truce could be arranged, though Hamas has vowed an all-out assault on Israel because of its air strikes over the past few days aimed at the hard-line Islamic group’s leadership.

At the end of last night’s talks, Hamas spokesman Ismail Abu Shanab read a brief statement saying that the Egyptians had made proposals that Hamas would consider, but he did not give details or take questions.

“We promised to study the ideas and give them an answer soon,” he said.

The Egyptian officials left without speaking to journalists. They had arrived in Gaza just hours after Palestinian security chief Mohammed Dahlan held talks with a senior Israeli defence official, Major General Amos Gilad.

A seven-year-old girl wounded on Tuesday in the first of the strikes, aimed at Hamas leader Abdel Aziz Rantisi, died of her wounds yesterday. Rantisi was also wounded.

A day after the assassination attempt, a Hamas suicide bomber blew up a bus in Jerusalem, killing 17 passengers and bystanders.

Sources close to the talks said Hamas leaders abroad are willing to consider a comprehensive cease-fire, provided Israel promises to halt targeted killings, incursions and other military strikes.

“I am optimistic that all the Palestinian factions will work together,” al-Agha said.

But for now the Palestinian factions propose at best to halt attacks in Israel, but not in the West Bank and Gaza, he said.

US President George W Bush lashed out at Hamas yesterday, calling on the world to cut off its funding. “It is clear that the free world and those who love freedom and peace must deal harshly with Hamas and the killers,” Mr Bush said.

Addressing a Cabinet meeting yesterday, Mr Sharon said that if the militants agree to a cease-fire, Israel would, for the most part, respect it.

“If no one fires on us, we will not return fire, except in cases of ticking bombs,” a Cabinet official quoted Mr Sharon as saying.

Up to now, Mr Sharon had rejected the truce idea out of hand, demanding an immediate crackdown on the militants, including arrest of their leaders.

Also yesterday, a team of US monitors arrived in the region, part of the road map peace plan launched formally by Mr Bush at a summit in Jordan on June 4 with Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas and Mr Sharon.

Team leader John Wolf, an assistant secretary of state, was to meet Israeli and Palestinian officials to start his mission, according to a statement from the US embassy in Tel Aviv.

According to the road map, which leads through three phases to creation of a Palestinian state in 2005, the monitors’ role is to check compliance of both sides to the terms of the plan and decide when new stages can begin.

Israeli and Palestinian security officials met on Saturday, and Israeli officials said afterward that they were considering gradually withdrawing from parts of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank town of Bethlehem, leaving security to the forces of Mr Abbas and security chief Mohammed Dahlan.

Mr Dahlan proposed that Israeli troops withdraw from large areas of Gaza, to positions held before the outbreak of fighting in September 2000.

He also asked Israel to pull out of the West Bank towns of Bethlehem and Ramallah, the Palestinians’ administrative centre.