Egyptians to discuss truce in Gaza

An Egyptian delegation is due to hold talks in Gaza City to help shore up an agreement by Palestinian resistance groups to suspend their attacks against Israel.

The Palestinian-Israeli truce has been less than watertight

Palestinian officials on Sunday said that the Egyptians would meet all the groups and Palestinian Authority officials to reactivate the dialogue.

“This visit comes as a result of the tense situation,” said one Palestinian source.

The delegation for the talks on Monday is to be led by General Mustafa al-Buheiri, the assistant to Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman who was instrumental in securing the “cool-down” agreement at a gathering in Cairo in March.

Major reduction

Although there has been a major reduction in attacks in recent months, the truce has been less than watertight.

In the latest salvo, the resistance group Hamas unleashed several shells and mortar rounds at Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip in the middle of last week after the death of two of its members.

Palestinian sources said that Interior Minister Nasser Yousef won an agreement last week from Hamas’s leader in Gaza, Mahmud Zahar, that the truce would be respected.

Source: AFP