Israel Considers Stepping Up Gaza Offensive

Rory McCarthy Jerusalem

Israel's most senior political leaders were meeting in Tel Aviv todayto decide whether to expand their devastating offensive in Gaza or consider the first outlines of a ceasefire proposal.

The prime minister, Ehud Olmert, will discuss with his cabinet a proposal to send Israeli forces into the built-up areas of Gaza, despite the rapidly mounting death toll.

Israel has sent thousands of Israeli troops and tanks into Gaza, where they have been locked in heavy fighting, and continues with intensive artillery strikes from land and sea, and aerial bombing.

Today's meeting comes after the deadliest day of fighting yesterday, in which more than 50 Palestinian civilians were killed when Israeli forces bombed two UN schools and several houses. Among the dead was an entire family of seven young children.

Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general said he was "deeply dismayed" by the killings, which he called "totally unacceptable." The UN has demanded an impartial investigation.

More than 660 Palestinians have now been killed in Israel's attack on Gaza, with nearly 3,000 wounded. A total of 10 people have died on the Israeli side: three of them were civilians, and four were Israeli soldiers mistakenly killed by their own troops.

Late yesterday France and Egypt proposed an initiative to stop the conflict in Gaza with an immediate ceasefire. Details were not released, but it would begin with an immediate halt to the fighting to allow in much-needed humanitarian aid followed by talks to resolve the conflict involving both Israel and Hamas, the Islamist movement that controls Gaza.

The French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, had travelled back to Egypt late on Tuesday to meet President Hosni Mubarak for another round of discussions, which eventually produced the initiative. Sarkozy said he had presented the idea to Olmert. "I have good hope that the reaction of Israeli authorities will allow us to imagine an end to the operation they have undertaken in Gaza: that, is not only a ceasefire but a withdrawal," Sarkozy said.

The US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, said she was "pleased" at the initiative, and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, gave his support. Abbas had given an emotional appeal for a ceasefire to the UN security council. "Do not let one more Palestinian mother cry for her children. Do not allow it. Put an end to the massacre of my people. Let my people live, and let my people be free," he said.

Israel has yet to respond to the proposal but has been insisting in recent days that any deal must prevent the smuggling of weapons into Gaza across the Egyptian border. Overnight, the Israeli military said it ha struck 40 sites in Gaza, including what it said were tunnels and rocket-launching sites used by Hamas.

Israeli officials have insisted that there is no humanitarian crisis in Gaza despite mounting evidence to the contrary from the UN and the world's leading aid agencies.

Last night, Israeli officials said they had agreed to set up a "humanitarian corridor" that would allow aid into parts of Gaza while Israeli forces suspended attacks in certain areas. It was not clear when the corridor might open or how much aid would be allowed in, or whether it would be safe for staff to distribute aid on the ground.

Israel continues to ban journalists from entering Gaza to report on the killings.