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Obama's envoy for stronger Gaza truce

Flies to Israel from Egypt in quest of ME peace

AFP, Jerusalem
US middleast envoy George Mitchell arrived in Israel yesterday after saying it was critical to consolidate the Gaza ceasefire, as 'tensions rose after a deadly raid by Palestinian militants.
He flew into Israel from Egypt on the second leg of his maiden trip to the region, instructed by President Barack Obama to "engage vigorously" in order to resuscitate the lifeless Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
"It is of critical importance that the ceasefire be extended and consolidated. We support Egypt's continuing efforts in that regard," he said after meeting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. He thanked Egypt for its efforts to turn into a lasting truce separate ceasefires Israel and Hamas declared January 18 after a devastating war and said Washington was "committed to vigorously pursuing lasting peace and stability in the region."
" The decision by President Obama to dispatch me to come to this region less than one week after his inauguration is clear and tangible evidence of this commitment," Mitchell said.
He arrived in Egypt on Tuesday amid the deadliest flare-up near Gaza since the fighting halted Israel's 22-day campaign on the Islamists stronghold.
Palestinian militants killed an Israeli soldier near the border early Tuesday and Israel retaliated with gunfire that left one man dead, an air strike that wounded three and bombing raids over border smugglingtunnels.
Senior Israeli officials, campaigning for February 10 parliamentary elections, vowed that the Jewish state would hit back hard for the attack.
"The army's reaction today was only operational. This was not the response to the killing of a soldier... Israel’s response shall come," a senior government official quoted Prime Minister Ehud Olmert as saying.
For his part, government spokesman Mark Regev said: "In the face of such violent provocation, Israel will act to protectitself."
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Ehud Barak cancelled his departure to the United States, which had been due later Wednesday, because of the violence, a ministry official said.
"Barak decided to cancel his trip to the United States during which he planned to meet his US counterpart Secretary of Defence Robert Gates and other senior officials in the administration due to the security events in the south," he said on condition of anonymity.
Mitchell was due to meet with senior Israeli government and intelligence officials later on Wednesday and head to Ramallah i n the occupied West Bank on Thursday for talks ill’ll” PtfFestinlairptJdsident Mahmud Abbas. 1
Abbas hit out at Israel
ahead of the talks.
" Today we are convinced more than ever, especially after the aggression against Gaza, that Israel does not want peace and we are going to say so to all those who come to see us," he told reporters late on Tuesday.
Abbas and Olmert had relaunched peace talks to great fanfare in November 2007 after a six-year hiatus, but the negotiations have made next to no progress.
Saying his Palestinian Authority planned to go to the International Criminal Court over Israel's "atrocious crimes that it committed in Gaza against the Palestinian people," the president also criticised the rival Hamas movement.
The Islamists, who kicked pro-Abbas forces out of Gaza in June 2007, had "dragged an entire poeple" to war by refusing to renew an Egyptian-brokered six-month truce with Israel on December 19, Abbas said.
In the wake of the war, Egypt has been holding separate talks with Israel and Hamas, as well as representatives of other Palestinian militant groups.
Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit said the talks have "evolved positively," and a "permanent" truce could be agreed in the first week of February.
He said such a ceasefire would lead to the reopening of crossing points into Gaza, where most of the 1.5 million population depend on outside aid, but which has been closed to all but basic humanitarian goods by Israel since Hamas seized power.
The war, launched on December 27 in response to militant rocket and mortar fire, killed more than 1,300 people, more than half of them civilians, and wounded more than 5,400, according to Gaza medics.
On the Israeli side, three civilians and 10 soldiers were killed in combat and by rocket fire.