CAIRO: Egypt expects Israel to agree to an offer for a period of calm from Palestinian militant factions brokered last week in Cairo, an Egyptian official was quoted as saying on Monday.
The official, who is reportedly close to the negotiations, told London-based pan-Arab newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat that he expects Israel to give an oral undertaking to abide by the truce, agreed to by the Palestinians on Wednesday.
Then the two sides will immediately undertake a ceasefire and Israel will open all crossing points with the Gaza Strip to allow in fuel, construction materials, food staples, medicines and all other merchandise, it said.
All Palestinian factions agreed on Wednesday to the plan for a comprehensive, simultaneous and reciprocal period of calm to be applied progressively, first in Gaza and then in the West Bank.
The official said that the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt would have to be reopened in accordance with a 2005 agreement that requires the involvement of the Palestinian Authority, European Union monitors and Israelis.
The reopening will take place according to the 2005 agreement, and if all parties concerned agree, there will be no problem, the official said.
Hamas has exercised sole control over the Gaza Strip since it ousted Palestinian Authority forces loyal to president Mahmoud Abbas in June last year.
Hamas has until now refused to hand over any control of the Strip to the PA or to allow Israelis to monitor the crossing via closed circuit video. The Islamists also want the EU monitors to be based in Egypt rather than in Israel. -AFP
