Second verse, same as the first...
Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia said Sunday he expects to begin talks with Islamic militants in the coming days about reaching a cease-fire with Israel — a move that could pave the way for renewing long-stalled peace talks with the Jewish state. Qureia said the truce talks would begin soon after the arrival Monday of Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman. The Egyptian, who has helped mediate past cease-fires, is coming to assist Qureia in talks with Palestinian militant groups.
Qureia hopes to persuade Islamic militant groups to end attacks against Israel as a first step toward securing an Israeli-Palestinian cease-fire.
| Been there, done that, got the corpses to prove it... |
A truce halting three years of fighting is seen as key to revitalizing talks on the U.S.-backed "road map" peace plan, which has stalled amid violence and Palestinian political crises.
| When we make Rantburg: The Movie, we're going to get Bill Murray to play the parts of Zinni, Mahmoud Abbas, and Qurei. All three scenes are going to be identical, except for the name of the character he plays... |
A cease-fire also could strengthen Qureia, whose government was sworn into office just last week. An earlier truce — hammered out by his predecessor — collapsed over the summer in a fresh wave of bloodshed. Palestinian militant groups — including Hamas and Islamic Jihad — have signaled a willingness to halt suicide bombings and other attacks if Israel stops its military operations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestinian Foreign Minister Nabil Shaath said Saturday.
| I'll bet Associated Press has the paragraph hot-keyed on its word processors... |
Israel, however, has not said whether it would agree to halt its military operations. Hamas' political leader, Khaled Mashaal, said Sunday that a cease-fire would depend on Israel. "If you can stop (Israel's) aggression and get an initiative from it and from America, then come to the Palestinian resistance and we will study it," Mashaal said Sunday in Beirut, Lebanon.
| "Bring us an offer and we may deign to consider it." |
It was unclear whether Suleiman would meet with militant groups. He is scheduled Monday to meet with Qureia and veteran Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who has called on all Palestinian factions to enter cease-fire talks. Asked Sunday whether Hamas is ready for a truce, Qureia said, "There is a Palestinian general desire for dialogue on this issue." |