OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, 18 December 2003 — Egyptian mediators failed yesterday to persuade Palestinian hard-liners to declare a cease-fire.
Palestinian officials said the Egyptians had pledges from the United States that it would pressure Israel to pull back from Palestinian cities in return for a complete truce. But Islamic Jihad official Mohammed Al-Hindi said the faction was opposed to the proposals after a second day of talks in Gaza with the Egyptians.
“The position of Islamic Jihad is clear and it has remained unchanged,” Al-Hindi said.
A similar mediation effort by Cairo failed earlier this month.
Israel has ruled out guaranteeing any cease-fire as the Palestinians have demanded, instead calling for factions to be dismantled.
“We cannot be misled by a cease-fire that provides shelter for terrorists,” Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom told a security conference in the Israeli town of Herzliya.
The Gaza talks came against the backdrop of renewed efforts to arrange the first summit between Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his Palestinian counterpart Ahmed Qorei to restart the stalled road map.
The plan calls for reciprocal steps to end three years of conflict and establish a Palestinian state by 2005. Palestinians are first meant to crack down on hard-line groups while the Israelis halt the construction of Jewish settlements.
But, casting doubt on whether the plan could work, Israeli officials have recently hinted at acting alone if it fails.
