Abbas in summit with resistance groups

Palestinian Prime Minister, Mahmud Abbas, is to hold talks with resistance groups on Tuesday about the state of a troubled ceasefire with Israel.

Premier will try to coax fighters to maintain the truce with Israel

Abbas will try to persuade groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad to stick with the truce, which is in danger of unravelling beacuse of continuing Israeli violations.

“We will meet Abu Mazen (Abbas) tonight at 1800 GMT,” senior Islamic Jihad official Muhammad al-Hindi said.

He added “all the Palestinian groups until this moment are committed to the ceasefire”, but Israeli violations of the truce have escalated “and will not go unanswered”.

Elswewhere, US President George Bush on Tuesday said the Palestinian Authority could – with US help – “dismantle and destroy” groups he said were opposed to peace.

Ceasefire

Senior Hamas figure Ismail Haniya also confirmed his group will hold talks with Abbas on Wednesday morning.

“All the Palestinian groups until this moment are committed to the ceasefire”

Muhammad al-Hindi
Islamic Jihad
 

But Haniya said it would be “too early” to discuss the extension of the three-month truce with Abbas.

The truce on anti-Israel attacks was called by Palestinian resistance groups on 29 June.

In return for the ceasefire the groups expected Israel to halt attacks against its members.

But Israel says the truce is unilateral and it is not bound by its terms.

The truce has appeared to be in danger of unravelling after a spate of attacks by Israel against resistance groups.

This was followed last week by a Palestinian bombing in Israel which killed two people.

 

Source: Reuters