Hamas awaits Israeli response to truce offer: Meshaal
DOHA (AFP) — Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal said on Saturday his movement is awaiting an official Israeli response to a truce offer in the Gaza Strip, even though Israel has already poured cold water on it.
Meanwhile in Egypt, where the government has been attempting to mediate a ceasefire, an official said various Palestinian factions are actually still formulating a common position on a proposal for an eventual deal.
Meshaal, speaking to reporters in the Qatari capital, Doha, said Hamas "has requested from the Egyptian delegation a paper with the pledges that the Israeli occupation agrees upon in order to calm the situation.
"Based on this paper, Hamas will decide whether to accept or refuse the easing of the situation that Egypt is trying to achieve between the Palestinians and the Israelis."
The Hamas supremo insisted that the truce offer was an Egyptian product and that Hamas agreed to go along with it only if Israel answered certain demands.
Hamas "did not initiate the offer to calm the situation," he said.
But Zaki said that on Tuesday and Wednesday, Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman will host Palestinian factions to discuss the truce proposal, though Zaki said "no dramatic developments are expected at these meetings.
In order for Egypt's mediation efforts to succeed, he said all parties "must show proof of cooperation and express a sincere desire to reach a ceasefire."
On Thursday, senior Hamas official Mahmud al-Zahar had said in Cairo that the Islamist movement had agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza first, which could be extended to the West Bank within six months.
Zahar, speaking after talks with Suleiman, said the move must be "reciprocal, simultaneous and comprehensive" and that Israel must end its crippling blockade of the impoverished territory.
Israel responded by saying it would only stop military raids on Gaza after Hamas gives up "terrorism" and after militants in the territory stop attacking the Jewish state and smuggling in weapons from Egypt.
But an official close to Defence Minister Ehud Barak suggested the two sides could still reach some form of tacit truce if militants first halt their rocket fire.
Egypt has been serving as a go-between in the truce negotiations as Israel considers Hamas a terror group and refuses any direct contacts.
Zaki said "the next phase is one of formulating a common Palestinian position regarding the truce, with the aim of presenting it to Israel and waiting for Israel's response to the Palestinian proposal.
He said one presented by Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit stipulates a ceasefire, the opening of the border crossings, a lifting of the blockade and finally the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
The plan "does not say the elements are simultaneous," Zaki said.
The spokesman also said he did not consider an apparent rejection by Israel's government spokesman of the Hamas proposal definitive.
On Friday, Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev scoffed at the Hamas proposal for a six-month truce in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip
"Unfortunately, this appears not to be serious at all," he said.
Meshaal said that among the pledges that Hamas expects is the "opening of the Rafah crossing point (with Egypt) and others" to ease the crippling blockade facing the Gaza Strip.
Zahar had said on Thursday that if Israel rejects a truce, Egypt would open its border with Gaza. Egypt has not commented on that assertion.
The Rafah crossing has been mainly closed since Hamas seized control of the territory from forces loyal to Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas last June.
Egypt has sent recently reinforcements to Rafah in a bid to prevent a repeat of mass border breaches in January, when hundreds of thousands of Gazan flooded into Egypt to stock up on vital supplies.
Israel allows only limited humanitarian aid into Gaza as part of a blockade aimed at forcing militants to stop rocket attacks.
Humanitarian organisations say the embargo has left Gaza teetering on the brink of disaster.
On Thursday, UNRWA halted food distribution to 650,000 people there, saying it no longer had any petrol for its aid trucks.
