Israel is on a collision course with Palestinian Islamic Hamas Movement, and should the ceasefire continue to remain elusive, the collision could come any time in the next few days, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said on Monday.
Barak made the remarks at a Labor faction meeting, implying that a confrontation with Hamas was inevitable. Without a ceasefire, he said that it could happen in days or weeks; with a ceasefire, he predicted it would happen within months.
"Fighting is taking place daily, without cessation, in the Gaza Strip," local media quoted Barak as saying. "I don't know if we will have a ceasefire first, or a confrontation, but to those who want to hurry up and launch a wide-scale operation: wouldn't it first be worthwhile to exhaust negotiations?"
However, the defense minister went on to emphasize that Israel currently was not talking with Hamas.
"The Egyptians are not acting as mediators on order of the United Nations, they also have an interest in the matter," Barak said. "If we want to create the reality of a ceasefire, we need to test its character. Our demands are clear: an end to rocket fire from Gaza, and that Hamas cease strengthening itself in Gaza."
On Sunday, Amos Gilad, head of the Political-Military Bureau of the Israeli Defense Ministry, wrapped up a several-hour visit to Egypt for talks with Egyptian mediators on a possible ceasefire deal between Israel and various Palestinian groups, including Hamas.
Gilad held talks with Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, who has been engaged in mediating between Israel and the Palestinian groups on the ceasefire talks.
During the meeting, they discussed "means to eliminate obstacles hindering reaching a truce between the Palestinians and Israelis," the official Egyptian MENA news agency quoted a well-informed Egyptian official as saying on condition of anonymity.
Suleiman is "exerting tireless efforts to bring closer Israeli and Palestinian views on reaching a ceasefire as soon as possible," said the official, urging the two sides to show necessary flexibility to reach the deal.
Egypt has been trying to broker a truce between the Palestinian groups and Israel to end their conflicts that may wreck U.S.-backed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian National Authority, but no tangible results have been reached up to now.
Source:Xinhua
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