Israel: Gaza Offensive May Be Near 'final Act'

Israel said today its Gaza offensive could be "in the final act" as moves towards a temporary ceasefire inch forward.

The Israeli envoy Amos Gilad was flying to Cairo this morning for the second day in a row to seek clarifications and express Israeli views about the latest Egyptian proposal for a ceasefire.

After a meeting last night between Israel's leaders, the foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, flew to Washington this morning to finalize an accord aimed at delivering Israel's key condition for a ceasefire: preventing Hamas from rearming.

Today's diplomatic manoeuvres follow reports that Hamas told Egypt, which is brokering the negotiations, that it would agree a year-long renewable ceasefire in Gaza if Israel pulled out its forces within seven days and reopened border crossings immediately.

"Hopefully we're in the final act," said Mark Regev, spokesman for the prime minister, Ehud Olmert,this morning. Briefings by the envoys working in Washington and Cairo could be followed by swift decisions by the security cabinet, he added.

The Egyptians have reportedly proposed an immediate time-limited ceasefire, during which the crossings will be opened for humanitarian aid. However Israel reportedly will not have to withdraw until a long-term truce is reached, which will include provisions to stop arms smuggling and a full lifting of the blockade. It is also insisting that Fatah and Hamas mend their split.

The moves come a day after Israel struck at the heart of Hamas, killing one of its most senior leaders and pushing deeper into Gaza City.

Israel kept up its pressure on Hamas today, with its aircraft striking about 40 targets over Gaza. An official statement by the military said said targets included smuggling tunnels along the Egyptian border, a rocket launcher that was allegedly ready for firing, and a mosque which housed a tunnel entrance and was used to store arms..

Ayman Taha, a Hamas spokesman, said it wanted Israel to leave Gaza within two weeks, to end the siege and to open the crossings in the presence of European and Turkish observers. Hamas also wants the Palestinian Authority and international monitors posted at the crossing into Egypt, at Rafah in Gaza's south.

Taha said it would reconsider extending the truce beyond one year if Israel fulfilled these conditions.

Khaled Meshal, the de facto Hamas leader, said: "We will not accept any political movement that doesn't satisfy these demands."

Israeli jets yesterday bombed a house in the Jabaliya refugee camp, killing the Hamas interior minister, Said Siam, the most senior Hamas leader to be killed since 2004 when Israel assassinated Dr Abdel Aziz Al Rantissi, a founding member of the militant Islamist group.

A Hamas official vowed vengeance for Siam's death. "The blood of Said Siam will be a curse on the Zionist entity," Muhammad Nazzal told al-Jazeera television.

Earlier in the week Israel bombed the house of Hamas' deposed prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh and last night it attacked and surrounded the house of the former foreign minister, Mahmoud Al Zahar.

Yesterday Israel shelled the main UN compound housing the Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which distributes food to 750,000 of the 1.5 million Palestinians in Gaza.

Israel struck the compound, where about 700 Palestinians were sheltering, shortly after the UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, arrived in Israel.

Ban, who was in the region to press for an end to the violence, described the two hits on the compound as "intolerable".

He said: "I conveyed my strong protest and outrage to the defence minister and the foreign minister. The defence minister said it was a grave mistake. He assured me that extra attention will be paid to UN facilities and staff and this will not be repeated."

Olmert said Israeli troops had retaliated against Hamas militants who were firing from within the compound. He later apologized, saying the response was "harsh".

The British prime minister, Gordon Brown, also condemned Israel for the attack. "When the UN is doing such vital work – humanitarian work among women and children in Gaza – no one can defend this attack by Israeli forces on the compound," he said.

It was the second time in this conflict that Israel has alleged that militants have used a UN compound to launch attacks. UNRWA's head in Gaza, John Ging, said the claim "was nonsense".

The UNRWA compound was one of several civilian institutions hit as troops moved into Gaza City, taking control of three neighborhoods. Shells struck a hospital and a building housing international media, even though the military reportedly checked the co-ordinates of the structure just hours before it was hit.

In a terse statement, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said the damage to the al-Quds hospital was "completely and utterly unacceptable based on every known standard of international humanitarian law".

The US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, rang Israel's defence minister, Ehud Barak, and the foreign minister, Livni, to say she was "deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation in Gaza".

Israel's envoy to Cairo, Amos Gilad, briefed Olmert, Livni and Barak last night. The three have reportedly been in disagreement all week about ending the three-week assault.

Israel's envoy to Cairo, Amos Gilad, was due to brief Olmert, Livni and Barak last night. The three have reportedly been in disagreement all week about ending the three-week assault.

Having refused to negotiate directly with Hamas since it was elected in 2006, Israel wants to ensure an internationally brokered ceasefire does not deliver the militants the recognition they crave.

Ban said he believed a truce could soon be reached. "There are certain elements in place that would enable a ceasefire, but it hinges on the political will of both sides," he told the media.