- Title: MIDDLE EAST: Hamas announces ceasefre after Israel declares truce
- Date: 19th January 2009
- Summary: NABLUS, WEST BANK (JANUARY 18, 2009) (REUTERS) HAMAS OFFICIAL HAMED BITAWI, SEATED IN HIS HOME PHOTOGRAPH OF BITAWI (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) HAMAS SPOKESMAN, HAMAS OFFICIAL HAMED BITAWI, SAYING: "After the Zionists' aggressive invasion failed to achieve any of its goals, thanks to God first of all and to the resistance, the Palestinian factions announced a ceasefire for a we
- Embargoed: 3rd February 2009 12:00
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- Topics: War / Fighting
- Reuters ID: LVADP6DPAGDWH9AP1UDYE0H4V83L
- Story Text: Hamas said on Sunday (January 18) it would cease fire immediately along with other militant groups in the Gaza Strip and give Israel, which already declared a unilateral truce, a week to pull its troops out of the territory.
"After the Zionists' aggressive invasion failed to achieve any of its goals, thanks to God first of all and to the resistance, the Palestinian factions announced a ceasefire for a week under the condition that the Israeli army withdraw from all the areas that it had occupied in the Gaza Strip. And that must be the first step to ending the siege and opening all the crossings," Hamed Bitawi, a Hamas official in the West Bank city of Nablus, told Reuters.
A spokesman for the Israeli Foreign Ministry, Yigal Palmor, said that Israel had heard media reports of Hamas' plans, but that it would not negotiate with the Islamist group. Palmor said Israel would only hold talks with Egypt and urged Hamas to do the same.
"We're only negotiating with Egypt. Egypt is the only negotiating track and it's only with Egypt that we are trying to sort out the problems and to see exactly how to install a durable ceasefire. Talks will go on, of course, with Egypt on this track. If Hamas wants to say something, they can say it to the Egyptians and they know that. They know that very well. So it is a bit curious that they should come out with such public calls on the media, when the only valid track is known to everybody. But again, the only valid track, the only valid negotiating track, is through Egypt and it is only with Egypt that we are working on the establishment of a durable and sustainable ceasefire," Palmor told Reuters in Jerusalem.
The Islamist group said previously it would not stop its attacks as long as Israeli soldiers remained in the Gaza Strip.
Ayman Taha, a Hamas official who is in Cairo for talks with Egypt on a truce deal, said Hamas was demanding the opening of all Gaza border crossings for the entry of "all materials, food, goods and basic needs".
Israel tightened its blockade of the Gaza Strip after Hamas seized the territory from forces loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in 2007.
Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired rockets into southern Israel in defiance of the unilateral ceasefire that Olmert declared late on Saturday (January 17) and which went into effect at 2 a.m. (0000 GMT) on Sunday.
Olmert said Israel would not bring its troops home until Hamas ceased fire completely and he threatened its military would respond strongly to any attacks on Israeli soldiers or cross-border rocket salvoes.
Touring the rocket-hit town of Sderot on Sunday, Israeli opposition leader Benyamin Netanyahu said Israel should continue to fight until Hamas stopped firing rockets.
"Despite the very strong blows that the IDF has delivered to Hamas terrorist organisation, it is clear that Hamas is still there, still going to make its efforts to re-supply itself with fresh rockets to bomb our cities and therefore it's also clear that we'll have to confront them again and take decisive action to remove the threat once and for all," Netanyahu told Reuters.
Leaders from Britain, Egypt, France, Germany, Italy and Turkey and U.N.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon are meeting in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to coordinate policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Egypt said the gathering would try to help it turn the shaky ceasefire into a mutual agreement leading to Israeli withdrawal from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
During the 22-day-long offensive, Israeli attacks killed more than 1,300 Palestinians, including some 700 civilians, Gaza medical officials said.
Israel said hundreds of gunmen were among the dead. Ten Israeli soldiers were killed as well as three Israeli civilians hit by Hamas rockets.
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