Egyptian Intelligence Chief ‘Umar Suleiman is arriving in Israel soon to hear Israel’s official response to Egypt’s cease-fire proposal for Gaza.
Cairo wants Israel to accept a deal that was agreed upon by 12 Palestinian factions, including Hamas.
Israel is being cautious about its response to the truce idea. Jerusalem is concerned that Hamas will exploit this truce to regroup and rearm, in preparation for the next round of conflict.
Israeli security experts are proposing the government conditions any acceptance to the truce on a deal to release Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
Shalit was captured by three Palestinian armed groups on the Gaza border nearly two years ago and is believed to be held in the Gaza Strip.
Under the proposed agreement, Palestinians are offering calm in the Gaza Strip in exchange for the opening of the crossings in the Gaza Strip.
Egypt has been mediating between Israel and Hamas in an effort to end the crisis in the Gaza Strip. Gazans have been under tremendous pressure since Hamas took over the strip in a military coup last June.
Armed Palestinian groups have been firing rockets onto Israeli communities on a nearly daily basis, while weapons and other illicit materials are being smuggled into the Gaza Strip via tunnels from Egypt.
Israel is restricting the passage of goods such as fuel into the coastal strip in an effort to bring down the Hamas leadership. Dozens of Palestinians, both gunmen and unarmed civilians, have been killed in Israeli military operations there over the past few months.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni is expected to meet with her Egyptian counterpart Ahmad Abu Al-Gheit during a donor conference in London on Friday.
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