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Palestinian group ready to end violence
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-01-22 23:03
A local group of Palestinian militants announced Saturday it is ready to stop
violence, a sign that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas appears to be making some
progress in persuading armed factions to halt attacks on Israel.
A spokesman for the
local Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades militant group in Gaza, who would only
identify himself as Abu Ibrahim, talks to the media in Gaza city, Saturday
Jan. 22, 2005. The man who represents a local group of Al Aqsa, not the
entire faction, said Saturday it is ready for a cease-fire providing
Israel halts military operations and begins releasing Palestinian
prisoners. [AP] | The announcement by gunmen from
the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a group with ties to Abbas' ruling Fatah
movement, came a day after some 3,000 Palestinian policemen were deployed in the
northern Gaza Strip to halt rocket fire on Israeli communities.
A top Israeli security official on Saturday praised the Palestinian effort to
rein in militants. Compared to lackluster performance in the past, "now it seems
they (Palestinian security forces) are taking positive action," said Brig. Gen.
Giora Eiland, head of Israel's National Security Council.
Eiland told Israel Radio that the situation remains fragile and that in the
long run Abbas will have to dismantle armed groups and raid weapons workshops
Abbas has said he wants to avoid force and is instead trying to reach
agreement with the militants.
In the past few days, he has been meeting with militant leaders in Gaza, and
participants have reported progress toward a truce. Egypt is expected to host
Abbas and Palestinian militant leaders in coming days in Cairo to finalize an
agreement, a top Palestinian official said on condition of anonymity.
The meeting is to be convened after the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which
ends Sunday.
The armed groups — mainly Hamas, Al Aqsa and Islamic Jihad — have said they
want Israel to promise that it is halting military operations, including arrest
raids and targeted killings of wanted Palestinians. Israel has refused to give
such a guarantee in the past, and it remains unclear if it will do so now.
On Saturday, a local Al Aqsa group said it is willing to halt attacks,
provided Israel also observes the truce and begins releasing Palestinian
prisoners. The group, which consists of several dozen gunmen, made the
announcement at a news conference in the basement of a building in Gaza City.
The Bush administration said Friday it is taking advantage of a lull in
violence to send the State Department's ranking Mideast official to the region
to assess chances of peacemaking.
![In this photo released by the Palestinian Authority, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, right, meets with representatives of Palestinian factions in Gaza City, Saturday, Jan. 22, 2005. Abbas who had said he wants to avoid force, and is instead trying to reach agreement with the militants, had been meeting in the past few days with militant leaders in Gaza, and participants have reported progress toward a truce deal that could halt attacks on Israelis. [AP]](xin_2501022223076282900436.jpg)
In this photo
released by the Palestinian Authority, Palestinian Authority President
Mahmoud Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, right, meets with representatives
of Palestinian factions in Gaza City, Saturday, Jan. 22, 2005. Abbas who
had said he wants to avoid force, and is instead trying to reach agreement
with the militants, had been meeting in the past few days with militant
leaders in Gaza, and participants have reported progress toward a truce
deal that could halt attacks on Israelis. [AP]
| The announcement of next week's trip by Assistant
Secretary of State William Burns was coupled with a positive U.S. response to
the Palestinian police deployment. "We have always stressed how important it is
for the Palestinians to organize themselves to end the violence, and we welcome
steps that are being taken in that direction," State Department spokesman
Richard Boucher said.
Militants have not fired rockets since Wednesday, and Hamas spokesman Mushir
al-Masri said the group was suspending attacks.
In his meetings with the militants, Abbas is also trying to forge agreement
on a joint political platform that would give him a stronger mandate in future
negotiations with Israel. The document being considered calls for establishing a
Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem, al-Masri
said.
Hamas is pledged to Israel's destruction and has carried out many suicide
bombings that have killed hundreds of Israelis. But in the past it has indicated
a willingness to consider a long-term truce.
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