The conflict between Israel and the Palestinians won't be over until Palestinian militants are disarmed, Israel Defence Forces Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon warnedon Friday.

"Do not get intoxicated by the current calm in the region. As long as (Palestinian leader Mahmoud) Abbas fails to collect the arms from the terror groups, the conflict will not end," Ya'alon said.

"The groups are utilizing the calm to further arm themselves as well as produce explosives and build up their depleted ranks." he said.

Earlier Friday, Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told Army Radio that Israel would refrain from military offensives to help make the shaky ceasefire a success.

He noted that Israel has already released some Palestinian prisoners, and plans to release more. Reiterating Israel's long-standing position, he said the militants must be disarmed at some point.

Meanwhile, Abbas said Friday that the Cairo agreement is "serious" and paves the way for progress in the peace process.

"The Palestinian agreement is important and serious and it will ... give the peace process a chance to move forward," Abbas said on his way home from Cairo, Israel Radio reported.

Leaders of 13 Palestinian groups on Thursday concluded two days of talks in Cairo by agreeing to extend the current period of calm on conditions that Israel implements its commitment to halt assault on the Palestinians and free all jailed Palestinians.

Source: Xinhua