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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Israel Rejects Proposed Truce as Talks Continue |
| 2009-01-01 |
| Israeli leaders Wednesday rejected a proposal to pause attacks on the Gaza Strip for 48 hours, declaring that there were no guarantees Hamas fighters would in return stop firing rockets into Israel. Discussions were continuing in hopes of developing a more durable cease-fire. But after looking at the existing proposal, "we saw that it did not contain the necessary elements to make the truce permanent," said Yigal Palmor, a spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry. "It lacks a plan to enforce the cease-fire, to make sure Hamas won't shoot rockets into Israel anymore, and stop the smuggling of weapons." "It does not contain any guarantees," he added. "There is nothing in the proposal that if we declare a unilateral cease-fire it will mean anything to Hamas and that it will ensure a durable cease-fire afterwards." He said meetings among Israeli leaders would continue today. "There is a lot of work that still needs to be done," he said. White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said President Bush had spoken this morning to Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, who reassured Bush that Israel was targeting Hamas operatives and trying to avoid civilian casualties. When asked whether the two had discussed a specific timetable for seeking a cease-fire, Johndroe said they hadn't discussed anything specific. "What's more important is the goal. As I said, we all want to see an end to the violence as soon as possible," Johndroe said at a news conference in Crawford, Tex., where Bush is visiting his family ranch. "President Bush wants to see an end to the violence. Prime Minister Olmert wants to see an end to the violence. But I think from the prime minister's perspective, an end to the violence means that Hamas stops firing rockets into Israel, and Israel won't have to go after the rocket launchers." Johndroe reiterated the White House's calls for a "sustainable and durable cease-fire that Hamas respects," and said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice "has been working the phones almost nonstop since Saturday," when the Israeli bombing campaign began. Israel continued to pound the Gaza Strip for the fifth day from the air and from the sea, targeting Hamas outposts and the network of tunnels along the Gaza-Egypt border used by the militant group to smuggle weapons, the Israeli military said. The strikes rattled buildings in Gaza City, where the targets included an office of Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas's leader in Gaza. Israel said the office was used for planning attacks against the country. Hamas continued firing as well. By Wednesday afternoon local time a barrage of more than 20 rockets and mortar shells had struck southern Israel. About 40 rockets hit Israeli territory Tuesday. Five rockets crashed in and around the city of Beersheba, about 25 miles from Gaza, late Tuesday and Wednesday--the farthest strikes by Hamas yet. There were no serious casualties reported Wednesday. |
| Posted by:Fred |