Rajiva Wijesinha, permanent secretary in Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Disaster Management and Human Rights, told a British newspaper, The Guardian, that earlier reports of many as 20,000 civilians being killed in the end stages of the years-long Tamil Tigers uprising were unverified and wrong.

“I would estimate it altogether at 3,000 to 5,000,” Wijesinha said, blaming the deaths on the rebels’ use of refugees as human shields. “The Tigers had prepared this hostage situation and the figures went up very badly.”

The United Nations and other countries had accused Sri Lanka of using heavy weaponry against the remaining rebels cornered in a “no-fire zone” along with civilians. Wijesinha said 81mm mortars were used against the Tigers, who he said were firing heavy weapons, including tanks, at the government forces.

Sri Lankan civilian toll said up to 5,000

The call by the rights group followed a report in the Times of London newspaper on Friday citing confidential UN reports that more than 20,000 civilians were killed by Sri Lankan army shelling.

The report followed weeks of allegations that large numbers of civilians had been killed as the army closed in on Tamil Tiger rebels to end the decades- long war.

Amnesty’s Asia Pacific director Sam Zarifi accused both sides of war crimes and called for an independent international probe.

“The Times report underscores the need for this investigation and the UN should do everything it can to determine the truth about the ?bloodbath? that occurred in northeast Sri Lanka,” Zarifi said in statement.

The statement said the UN “must immediately publicise its estimate of the number of civilians killed by the two sides in the final weeks of fighting”.

Sri Lanka’s Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe dismissed Amnesty’s call and said the organisation was being “ridiculous to keep harping on things they cannot substantiate,” he told AFP by telephone from Geneva.

The Colombo-based government, which has rejected demands by the UN Human Rights Council for a fact-finding mission on the war crimes allegations, on Friday angrily dismissed the Times report.

“These figures are way out,” defence ministry spokesman Lakshman Hulugalle said. “We totally deny the allegation that 20,000 people were killed.”

Amnesty said, however, that it continues to receive reports of widespread human rights violations, with more than 280,000 people displaced by the recent fighting and now restricted to state-run welfare camps in the island’s north.

“The UN must address the war crimes and grave human rights violations that have occurred — and could still be occurring — in Sri Lanka,” Zarifi said.

He said that despite repeated calls, the Sri Lankan government continued to restrict access to the camps by international humanitarian organisations, including the UN and the Red Cross.

“I am appealing to all these rights groups to let us get on with the job of resettling these people in their homes in the quickest possible time,” Samarasinghe said.

The island’s military claimed complete victory over separatist Tamil Tigers after wiping out the guerrillas’ leadership nearly two weeks ago.

Amnesty calls for probe of Sri Lanka civilian deaths

Representatives of several Tibetan groups in exile say tensions remain high in Tibet. The groups say China has responded to the 50th anniversary of the occupation of the country with a military crackdown that has increased the climate of fear and intimidation faced by the Tibetan people.

President of the Geneva-based Tibetan U.N. Advocacy group, Ngawang Choepel, likens Tibet to a huge detention center.

“As the Dalai Lama said, it is like a death sentence has been passed upon the Tibetan people. Given these alarming developments and given the history of over 50 years of human rights violations by the Chinese authorities in Tibet, what we are asking today is for a high-level U.N. engagement with the Chinese authorities to stop these brutal crackdowns against the Tibetan people,” said Choepel.

At the current session of the U.N. Human Rights Council, a number of leading human rights organizations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have presented reports on the deplorable human rights situation in Tibet.

Choepal says he is pleased by the amount of evidence presented in these reports of extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, torture, and enforced disappearances. But, he adds, he is disappointed by the reports presented by several U.N. rights groups.

“For example, the report of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has not highlighted the massive arbitrary detentions which took place in Tibet … Now concerning the Working Group on Enforced Disappearances, again my own NGO submitted cases. But, this year, very, very little attention has been paid. And, we must not forget the case of the Panchan Lama of Tibet. His disappearance remains an outstanding case before the Working Group,” said Choepel.

Twelve years ago, the 11th Panchan Lama, then six years old, disappeared after the Dalai Lama nominated him to this position. He and his family have not been seen since. The Chinese authorities say they are well and do not want to be disturbed.

The Tibetan groups are asking the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay to lead a high-level inquiry into the situation of Tibetans. But, the prospects are not promising. They say requests to meet with the High Commissioner have gone unanswered.

Tibetan Groups Urgently Appeal for UN Intervention

Humanitarian aid chief Louis Michel called the destruction left by Israel’s offensive “abominable”, but said Hamas bore “overwhelming responsibility”.

He said there would be no dialogue with the “terrorist” movement until it gave up violence and recognised Israel.

He also announced emergency aid for Gaza worth more than US $70m (£50m).

US President Barack Obama, meanwhile, dispatched his new Middle East envoy, George Mitchell, on his debut mission to the region having briefed him to engage “vigorously” to forge “genuine progress” in peace talks.

Sick of paying

Touring some of Gaza’s worst-hit areas of Israel’s 22-day assault which killed about 1,300 Palestinians, including 400 children, Mr Michel described the situation as “abominable, indescribable”.

“At this time we have to also recall the overwhelming responsibility of Hamas,” he said.

“I intentionally say this here – Hamas is a terrorist movement and it has to be denounced as such.”

Thirteen Israelis were killed in the conflict, and Mr Michel later visited the southern Israeli town of Sderot, the target of Palestinian militant rocket fire.

There, he called on Israel to lift its blockade of Gaza and accused both sides of violating humanitarian law.

“Please open the crossings, you have to broaden the range of products that you let in,” he urged Israel’s authorities. “We, the EU, condemn Qassam attacks and military options which target the civilian population.”

The former Belgian foreign minister insisted there would be no dialogue with Hamas, saying its use of terrorism against Israeli civilians meant it was not a legitimate resistance movement.

Some aid agencies have expressed doubts about how effective a reconstruction drive in Gaza can be without the involvement of Hamas, which controls the territory, says the BBC’s Aleem Maqbool in Gaza.

Announcing the extra aid, Mr Michel said people in the EU were sick of paying for the same infrastructure being destroyed over and over again in Israeli military action.

The EU is the main donor to the Palestinians, having given three billion euros since 2000, Mr Michel said.

“Every year, we spend 600 to 700m euros. Today we decided on a supplementary payment of 60m euros.”

‘Reinvigorate process’

US envoy George Mitchell is to visit Israel, the West Bank, Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia during a week-long tour, with European stops including Paris and London, said state department spokesman Robert Wood.

He said Mr Mitchell would meet “senior officials to discuss the peace process and the situation in Gaza”.

It remained unclear whether Mr Mitchell would travel to the Gaza Strip.

Separately, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said he was heading to the Middle East to join efforts to cement a permanent cease-fire between Hamas and Israel.

He said he would spend a week in the region, starting with meetings with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo on Tuesday.

Israeli and Palestinian faction representatives have visited Cairo for talks with Egyptian officials since a non-negotiated ceasefire came into effect on 18 January.

Hamas wants an end of Israel’s punishing blockade of Gaza.

Israel, which will hold a general election on 10 February, wants a long-term ceasefire and curbs on Hamas rearming.

BBC NEWS | Middle East | EU envoy lays Gaza blame on Hamas

The decision was bitterly criticised by a powerful coalition of politicians, charities and religious leaders.

More than 11,000 complaints from the public had been received by Sunday night, against only 68 messages of support.

Thousands of protesters massed outside BBC headquarters in London and demonstrators invaded the Glasgow office of BBC Scotland.

More than 50 MPs from across the political spectrum have backed an emergency Commons motion calling on the BBC to screen the two-minute appeal by the Disasters Emergency Committee, which represents 13 leading British charities.

ITV, Channel 4 and Five have all agreed to show it after their main news bulletins
tonight. Sky News has yet to decide.

BBC bosses insist the corporation’s reputation for impartiality would be dented if they did. But critics branded the decision ‘inconsistent and incoherent’ as the BBC has previously screened appeals for victims of conflicts.

Last year, it broadcast an appeal for the victims of civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The DEC hopes to raise millions to bring emergency aid to 500,000 Palestinians left without access to running water following Israel’s three-week assault on the territory.

The charities say families are in desperate need of food, medicines and shelter as a result of the conflict between Israel and Hamas-led militants.

BBC director general Mark Thompson rejected a direct plea from International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander to show the appeal.

He said: ‘The danger for the BBC is that this could be interpreted as taking a political stance on an ongoing story. When we have turned down DEC appeals in the past it has been because of this risk of giving the public the impression that the BBC was taking sides in an ongoing conflict.’

But Mr Alexander said the public would be ‘shocked, surprised and saddened’.

He said: ‘I think the British public can distinguish between support for humanitarian aid and perceived partiality in a conflict.

‘I really struggle to see, in the face of the immense human suffering in Gaza at the moment, that this is in any way a credible argument.’

Mr Thompson’s explanations were dismissed as ‘completely feeble’ by health minister Ben Bradshaw.

The criticism was echoed by religious leaders including Archbishop of York Dr John Sentamu, Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams and some Jewish groups.

Urging the BBC to ‘wake up and get on with it’, Dr Sentamu said: ‘In the end, it’s not a question of impartiality, it’s a question of those who have been made destitute, those who need food, those who need medicine, those who need help.

‘This is not an appeal for Hamas – that would be horrendous and horrific. This is to help actual people who are wounded, who need medicines, who need shelter, who need food.’

Labour MP Richard Burden will table an early-day motion today criticising the BBC’s ‘unconvincing and incoherent’ decision.

He said: ‘This is not about taking sides in the conflict. It is about providing urgent help to people in desperate need. More than 400 children have died, thousands are homeless and nothing short of a humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding in Gaza.

‘The important thing is to get aid into Gaza. This is recognised by almost everyone – including the Government. The BBC appears to be the only one who has a problem seeing this.’

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg said it was an ‘insult’ to suggest viewers could not distinguish between the humanitarian needs of children and families in Gaza and the ‘political sensitivities of the Middle East’.

He said: ‘To suggest that the BBC should somehow not allow people to show their compassion for that human suffering because of the wider controversy in the Middle East is a case of the BBC totally getting its priorities upside-down.’

Justice Minister Shahid Malik said he had not met anyone who supported the BBC’s position.

He said: ‘Lots of Jewish friends I have spoken to are horrified by what the BBC are doing. I haven’t come across anyone, frankly, that supports the BBC’s position.’

Some of the comments drew criticism, however, from BBC Trust chairman Michael Lyons, who said they were ‘coming close to constituting undue interference in the editorial independence of the BBC’.

Culture Secretary Andy Burnham said it was right for the BBC to make its own decision.

He said: ‘These are difficult judgments for all broadcasters, but particularly for the BBC
because of the way it is funded.

‘Everybody likes to accuse the BBC of bias one way or another and it always finds itself in the centre of very difficult judgment calls about these kind of things.’

He added: ‘I am pleased that other broadcasters have decided to show this appeal.’

Crisis at BBC escalates as 11,000 complain over refusal to broadcast Gaza appeal | Mail Online

The European Union foreign ministers said it was critical that the rival Hamas and Fatah political factions reconcile, so the border crossings of the Gaza Strip can be opened for humanitarian and other assistance after three weeks of conflict with Israel.

European politicians said it is essential for the Palestinians to speak with a single voice.

Gaza medics say some 1,300 Palestinians were killed and more than 5,000 were wounded during the Israeli offensive on Gaza that also killed more than a dozen Israelis, most of them soldiers. Thousands of Palestinian homes were destroyed.

European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana leaves on Monday for the Palestinian territories, Jordan and Israel to help push for a peace in the region.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Solana said the EU supported Egyptian mediation efforts to cobble a cease-fire between the warring sides.

“We support all the efforts Egypt has been doing – has done – and we wait to see the results,” said Javier Solana. “Allow me to say that we continue doing that and our policy has not changed.”

Sunday’s ministerial meeting in Brussels, which included foreign ministers from those regions along with Turkey, aimed to get Arab backing for a peace initiative.

EU foreign ministers are expected to meet again on Monday to discuss progress toward peace in the Mideast as well as how to bolster the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and how to begin rebuilding the war-torn Gaza Strip after the conflict. The EU is the largest foreign donor to the Palestinian territories.

VOA News – EU, Arab Countries Call on Palestinians to Unite

Just a couple of days ago, three hospitals were attacked. The most serious was on the Al-Quds Palestinian Red Crescent hospital in Gaza city. All the patients had to be moved to the main hospital, Shifa.

Tony Laurence is acting head of the World Health Organization’s Office in the West Bank and Gaza. In a briefing from Jerusalem, he told journalists in Geneva that overall, 16 health facilities and 16 ambulances have been damaged or destroyed, most by indirect fire.

“This recent damage to health facilities and so on comes after an assurance was given us by Israel and an order issued as we were advised by the general of the southern command that ambulances and medical personnel and U.N. as well must be protected. One has to ask what has one to make of such assurances when only two or three days later we have these incidents occurring,” he said.

The Palestine Health Ministry reports nearly 1,200 people have been killed and 5,300 wounded. Most are civilians and one-third are children.

The Israeli Cabinet reportedly is preparing to vote on a proposal for a unilateral cease-fire Saturday evening. But, in the lead-up to this vote, Israel mounted 50 air strikes Friday evening, killing and wounding more people.

Laurence says it is virtually impossible in some areas, particularly around Gaza City, for ambulances and paramedics to reach people who are wounded and dead because of the fighting. He says the health care system has been weakened and depleted because of the 18-month Israeli blockade.

He says hospitals are short of supplies, the equipment is deplorable and the infrastructure is in desperate need of repair.

“Despite all that, the hospital doctors have coped remarkably well,” said Laurence. “They are very experienced with this kind of work. But, it is a system now under enormous strain and, of course, it is now absolutely at full capacity and, the beds are steadily filling up. The main hospital Shifa has coped up to now by very efficient discharge of patients as soon as they are ready to be moved on.”

Laurence says this situation cannot go on for much longer. He says both the hospitals and health personnel are reaching the limit of what they can do to care for the ever-growing number of war wounded.

He says the World Health Organization is assisting the hospitals. He says WHO is trying to address the shortage of drugs and equipment. But, he says there is only so much that can be done under the current terrible circumstances.

VOA News – WHO Appeals For Protection of Hospitals And Ambulances Hit In Gaza

Mr. Olmert, who said all Israeli objectives for the war had been reached, said Israel was responding positively to a call by President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt earlier in the day for an immediate cease-fire, in a clearly orchestrated move by two countries that both see the Hamas movement in Gaza as a threat. Meanwhile, Hamas leaders outside Gaza have insisted that the group will fight on, regardless of any Israeli declaration.

The announcement came on a day in which Israel was again criticized by the United Nations over civilian deaths in Gaza — this time after a tank fired at a United Nations school, killing two young brothers taking shelter there.

United Nations aid officials raised questions about whether the attack, and others like it, should be investigated as war crimes. The Israeli Army said that it was investigating the reports at the highest level but that initial inquiries indicated that troops were returning fire from near or within the school.

The Israeli cease-fire, which becomes effective at 2 a.m. Sunday, could mean an effective end to a three-week-old war that has killed at least 1,200 Palestinians, with more buried under rubble, and 13 Israelis. But even then, the shape of any lasting peace was far from clear.

Israel has signaled that its troops will stay in Gaza until a formal truce is signed that meets Israeli goals of stopping rocket fire from Gaza and sharply hindering the smuggling of arms, weapons, cash and fighters into Gaza through tunnels from Egypt. But the government says it will not sign any deal with Hamas, which is committed to Israel’s destruction and whose rule over Gaza Israel does not want to recognize.

Also, Israeli officials said that they reserved the right to attack again in the future if Hamas kept firing rockets into Israel. Hamas, battered but hardly broken, is expected to reassert its political control over Gaza and to resist any attempt to restore a presence for Fatah, the rival faction that runs the Palestinian Authority, within Gaza.

The announcement of the unilateral cease-fire came on the 22nd day of the war, after repeated calls by the United Nations Security Council and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for an immediate halt to the fighting and the deaths of civilians.

The military said that it struck hundreds of targets overnight, including rocket-launching sites, weapons caches and 70 smuggling tunnels, and that its troops tightened the encirclement of Gaza City.

Though exiled Hamas figures vowed to keep fighting, it was unclear how the cease-fire will be received by leaders within Gaza. The group’s representatives were scheduled to meet Egyptian officials in Cairo who are trying to pull together a sustainable truce of at least a year that will end rocket fire into Israel, hinder Hamas resupply and reopen all the crossings into encircled Gaza from both Israel and Egypt.

Particularly concerned about limiting smuggling, the United States and Israel signed a “memorandum of understanding” on Friday in Washington that calls for expanded cooperation to prevent Hamas from rearming through Egypt. The agreement, which is vague, promises increased American technical assistance and international monitors, presumably to be based in Egypt, to crack down on the smuggling.

As important, the United States agreed to work with NATO partners to interdict arms smuggling into Gaza by land and sea from Syria and Iran, and in a letter, Britain, France and Germany also offered to help interdict the smuggling of arms to Hamas.

On Saturday, President Nicolas Sarkozy of France announced a summit meeting about Gaza for Sunday, of which Mr. Mubarak would be co-chairman. Mr. Sarkozy announced that Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and Prime Minister Gordon Brown of Britain would attend; Mr. Brown said later he was “considering” attending. Egypt has invited Italy, Spain, Turkey, Mr. Ban and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, whose Fatah party governs the West Bank. The meeting, to take place in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el Sheik, is about bringing a halt to the fighting in a sustainable way and reconstruction aid for Gaza.

While Mr. Sarkozy initiated the process with Mr. Mubarak in the waning days of the Bush administration, it has been in the end a deal shaped by Egypt and Israel.

Mr. Mubarak’s foreign minister, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, said that his country would not be bound by the memorandum of understanding agreed to by the United States and Israel and would not accept foreign troops on its soil. But officials of both Israel and the United States say Egypt has been showing a new seriousness about stopping the smuggling.

The Arab and Muslim world again appeared to be split into two camps. Egypt and Saudi Arabia have been openly critical of Hamas, pressing it to agree to a cease-fire. Qatar, meanwhile, which is close to Iran, held a meeting with Syria, Iran, Mauritania and Hamas’s exiled political leader, Khaled Meshal, as the Palestinian representative. Mr. Abbas, who is supported by the United States and Egypt, had refused to go to Qatar.

In Beit Lahiya, some 1,600 displaced Gazans have taken shelter at a school run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or Unrwa, which cares for Palestinian refugees from the 1948-49 war and their descendants.

John Ging, the Gaza director of the agency, said that two brothers, ages 5 and 7, were killed about 7 a.m. by Israeli fire at the school. Their mother, who was among 14 others wounded, had her legs blown off.

“These two little boys are as innocent, indisputably, as they are dead,” Mr. Ging said. “The question now being asked is: is this and the killing of all other innocent civilians in Gaza a war crime?”

Christopher Gunness, the refugee agency’s spokesman, said: “Where you have a direct hit on an Unrwa school where about 1,600 people had taken refuge, where the Israeli Army knows the coordinates and knows who’s there, where this comes as the latest in a catalogue of direct and indirect attacks on Unrwa facilities, there have to be investigations to establish whether war crimes have been committed,” as well, he added “as violations of international humanitarian law.”

The strike was the fourth time Israel has hit an Unrwa school during the war on Hamas. On Jan. 6, Mr. Ging said, 43 people died when an Israeli shell hit the compound of a school in Jabaliya. Israel has disputed the death toll and said it was returning mortar fire from the school compound.

Four Israeli soldiers, two of them officers, were seriously hurt by mortar fire in fighting on Saturday morning, the army said, suggesting that they were victims of friendly fire. And it said that Hamas had fired 12 rockets at Israel on Saturday, a sharp reduction from daily totals since the start of the war.

While the details are debated and the dead are counted, a critical long-term issue is whether the Gaza operation restores Israel’s deterrent. Israel wants Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran and the Arab world to view it as a nation too strong and powerful to seriously threaten or attack. That motivation is one reason, Israeli officials say privately, for going into Gaza so hard, using such firepower, and fighting Hamas as an enemy army.

The answer won’t be known for many months, but the key to the Muslim world’s reaction is actually that of the Israeli public, said Yossi Klein Halevi, of the Adelson Institute for Strategic Studies in Jerusalem. “The Arabs take their cue from Israeli responses,” he said. “Deterrence is about how Israelis feel, whether they feel they’ve won or lost.”

Mr. Halevi cited both the 1973 war — which Egyptians celebrate and Israelis mourn, though it ended with a spectacular Israel counterattack — and the 2006 war against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, apologized for the 2006 war on television, “but he quickly reversed himself to declare a wonderful victory when he saw the Israeli public declaring defeat,” Mr. Halevi said.

Even more important, perhaps, this Gazan war is a test case for any potential Israeli withdrawal from the occupied West Bank. If Israelis feel that the West Bank will turn into another kind of chaotic, Hamas-run Gaza, they will be unwilling to withdraw — especially if they believe that once they withdrew, and if they were attacked from the West Bank, they would not be allowed to respond with force.

“Gaza is an important test of whether we can defend ourselves within the 1967 boundaries,” Mr. Halevi said, noting that Hamas had been attacking Israel proper, not settlements. “Will we be able to defend ourselves if we need to from the West Bank? Will the international community let us?”

The Israeli public has stayed united behind the war as a necessary battle, despite serious misgivings about the death toll of Palestinian civilians and international condemnation. Even Meretz, a party on the left of Israeli politics, supported the air war.

Hamas has modeled itself on Hezbollah, calling on Iranian support. Mr. Nasrallah once spoke of Israeli power as a spider web — impressive from afar, but easily brushed aside. This war against Hamas, Mr. Halevi said, “is the revenge of the spider.”

Israel Declares Cease Fire; Hamas Says It Will Fight On – NYTimes.com

If Israel agrees to stop shooting, Israel radio said a truce summit would be held in Cairo Sunday with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Israeli leaders expected to attend.

Hamas’ political chief rejected Israel’s conditions, but negotiators for the Islamic militant group were in behind-the-scenes contact with mediators in Cairo and signaled it was time for a truce.

“If they are ready, we are ready,” Osama Hamdan, a top Hamas figure, told Sky News.

Israel launched its military offensive Dec. 27 to try to halt Hamas rocket attacks on southern Israel, and top envoys were in Cairo and Washington on Friday to discuss cease-fire terms.

Palestinian medics say the fighting has killed at least 1,140 Palestinians and Israel’s bombing campaign caused massive destruction in the Gaza Strip. Thirteen Israelis have been killed, four by rocket fire, according to Israel.

The Israeli vote was scheduled hours after the U.S. paved the way by agreeing to provide assurances that Hamas will not be able to rearm if Israel approves a cease-fire. It comes ahead of President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration on Tuesday, and Israeli elections next month.

A senior Israeli official said a vote approving the truce would amount to a “unilateral” cease-fire, though Israeli forces would only leave Gaza after an official declaration that the fighting was over. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.

A truce would begin a phased process in which Israel halts its military offensive and then gauges the reaction from Hamas militants, the official said. If the militants continue to fire rockets, the assault would resume.

Under the deal, Egypt would shut down weapons smuggling routes with international help, and discussions on opening Gaza’s blockaded border crossings would take place at a later date.

U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas said Ban, who had weekend visits planned to Lebanon and Syria, was considering whether to attend a summit in Cairo Sunday, adding: “There’s been no decision yet.”

Israeli leaders were also considering whether to attend the summit, the senior Israeli official said.

The diplomatic developments coincided with an easing of violence in Gaza, where Israeli assaults killed 14 Palestinians on Friday, a lower death toll than in recent days. Palestinian medics took advantage of the relative calm, digging out 25 bodies buried under rubble in areas where Israeli forces and militants had clashed.

Palestinians heard dozens of Israeli tanks and other military vehicles roll away from the eastern and southern edges of Gaza City. An Israeli security official said the tanks would redeploy and were not withdrawing. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Israeli envoy Amos Gilad returned from Cairo and reported “substantial progress” in truce talks with Egyptian mediators, said a statement from the office of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

“I hope we are entering the endgame and that our goal of sustained and durable quiet in the south is about to be attained,” Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said.

In Washington, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni signed an agreement intended to prevent Hamas from smuggling weapons into Gaza if a cease-fire is implemented.

Livni described the deal as “vital … for a cessation of hostility” and said it was meant “to complement Egyptian actions and to end of the flow of weapons to Gaza.”

Earlier, Rice said she hoped European countries would work out similar bilateral agreements with Israel.

“There are a number of conditions that need to be obtained if a cease-fire is to be durable,” Rice said. “Among them is to do something about the weapons smuggling and the potential for resupply of Hamas from other places, including from Iran.”

The agreement outlines a framework under which the United States commits detection and surveillance equipment, as well as logistical help and training to Israel, Egypt and other nations to be used in monitoring Gaza’s land and sea borders.

Rice and State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Obama and Secretary of State-designate Hillary Rodham Clinton had been consulted on the details of the document, which was concluded after frenetic negotiations to address Israeli concerns that Hamas would use a cease-fire to stock up on weapons.

A diplomat on the U.N. Security Council in New York said he was reasonably optimistic that “we are in the last leg of the negotiations,” though some issues remain unresolved.

There were long discussions on border security because the Egyptians don’t want any kind of international presence on their side of the border, said the diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the negotiations are being held behind closed doors.

“Everything has to be on the other side of the border, which means there’s a problem of who will be there, not only on behalf of the international community, but also which Palestinians. So it’s linked to a potential agreement between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority — so it’s linked to other discussions,” the diplomat said.

In addition, he said, discussions were under way with the U.S. on technology to help locate and destroy the tunnels Hamas has used to smuggle in weapons.

In Gaza, residents said they would welcome an end to the fighting, but expressed skepticism a cease-fire can hold.

“Everybody wants the world to return to what it was. But I think it’s empty words,” said Ghadir Mohammed, who was forced to flee her Gaza City home because of the fighting. “Let’s assume if Hamas fires a rocket, will they be quiet about it? Israel isn’t the kind to be quiet.”

Hiba Dahshan from the eastern Gaza City neighborhood of Zeitoun where some of the heaviest fighting has taken place, said: “We are exhausted. We need a solution. Hopefully they’ll halt fire.”

A resident of the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon, which has been targeted by Hamas rockets, said the army needed to free Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit — abducted by Hamas in 2006 — and be sure there would be quiet in southern Israel before stopping the fight.

“For eight years, they have been shooting at us,” said Yigal Hakmon, manager of a convenience store. “We can’t stop in the middle. We have to finish. We have to kill all the Hamas people.”

Hamas, which has controlled the tiny Mediterranean strip since 2007, has demanded an immediate Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and the opening of blockaded border crossings.

Mohamed Nazzal, a Hamas official based in Damascus, said the Egyptians invited Hamas on Friday for more discussions.

“It is expected that we go to see what is the opinion of the Israelis on the Hamas propositions,” Nazzal said.

The Syrian-based Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal took a hard line at a summit of Arab countries in the Qatari capital of Doha, asking them to cut off any ties with Israel.

“We will not accept Israel’s conditions for a cease-fire,” Mashaal told the summit. He said Hamas demands that “the aggression stop,” Israeli troops withdraw and crossings into Gaza open immediately.

Qatar and Mauritania heeded Mashaal’s call, suspending political and economic contacts with Israel to protest the fighting. Qatar does not have diplomatic relations with Israel but maintains lower-level ties; Mauritania has full relations, but Israel’s embassy in Mauritania was to remain and its ambassador was not being expelled.

Israel says it’s near ‘endgame’ for Gaza offensive – Yahoo! News

The children were airlifted on a Belgian military plane, which brought them from El-Arish, an Egyptian town about 60km (37 miles) from Gaza.

Belgian media say the children’s ages range from two and a half to 18 years.

Each child is accompanied by a parent. More than 200 Belgians have offered to accommodate the parents, reports say.

Belgian RTBF radio says Belgium is the first European country to receive Palestinian children injured in the current violence in Gaza.

Belgium’s Le Soir newspaper says medics from the World Health Organization chose the children to be evacuated to Belgium from the war zone.

A Belgian foreign ministry spokesman, quoted by RTBF radio, said there might be more similar flights. “Belgium is ready to receive another few dozen children, if need be,” Francois Delhaye said.

BBC NEWS | Europe | Injured Gaza children in Belgium