Hamas-Israel ceasefire to come into effect from Thursday

Abu Dhabi/Gaza City: Hamas leaders in Gaza on Tuesday said they have reached a long-awaited ceasefire with Israel meant to end months of bruising Israeli attacks on Palestinian territories and Palestinian assault into Israel.

The announcement came shortly after Egypt, which has been trying to broker the truce for months, said the ceasefire would go into effect from Thursday.

Israel refused to confirm a deal, but said a "new reality" would take hold if Palestinian attacks end.

Even as the deal was reached, the UAE called on all Palestinian parties to place the interest of Palestinian people over other considerations to obtain the legitimate rights of establishing an independent state, with Jerusalem as its capital.

The call was made by President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan during a meeting with Khalid Mesha'al, head of the Hamas politburo, yesterday in the presence of General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.

Arab peace efforts

Shaikh Khalifa stressed the importance of the Palestinian national unity as a fundamental to reach a just and peaceful settlement based on international resolutions and the Arab peace initiative.

Shaikh Khalifa called on various factions on the Palestinian front to overcome their differences and defend the interests of the Palestinian people.

He expressed optimism over the success of ongoing efforts by Egypt to strike a truce between Hamas and Israel to reduce the suffering of the Palestinian people in the occupied territories, especially in Gaza.

In the Gaza Strip, Hamas officials said they would not let violence derail the Egyptian efforts. "We are going to commit ourselves to the start time that Egypt is going to declare regarding the calm," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri.

An Egyptian official said if the area is quiet for three days, Israel would begin to open Gaza's border posts to let more humanitarian supplies into the area. A week later, Israel would allow in additional goods.

Details: Key points of agreement

The key six points in the burgeoning agreement:

• Egypt declares a starting time for the truce.
• Israel reopens the Karni and Sufa border posts three days later.
• Hamas guarantees that all Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip will abide by the ceasefire.
• Ten days after the truce begins, Israel removes limitations on the flow of goods through Karni and Sufa.
• Hamas and Fatah reach a deal on administering Rafah crossing.
• Talks on Rafah and negotiations to secure Gilad Shalit's release, in a prisoner swap with Hamas, will be held in parallel.

- Reuters