Israel declares unilateral Gaza ceasefire

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(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-01-18 09:00

A summit set for Sunday in Egypt is meant to give international backing to the ceasefire will. Leaders of Germany, France, Spain, Britain, Italy, Turkey and the Czech Republic -- which holds the rotating EU presidency -- are expected to attend along with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and UN chief Ban.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert looks on after giving a statement following a meeting of Israel's security cabinet in Tel Aviv, January 17, 2009. [Agencies]

It was not immediately clear whether Israel would send a representative, and Hamas has not been invited.

During its campaign, Israel said it destroyed roughly 60 percent of the hundreds of tunnels.

As it seeks a longer-term solution, Israel signed a deal Friday in Washington in which the United States agreed to commit detection and surveillance equipment, as well as logistical help and training to Israel, Egypt and other nations to monitor Gaza's land and sea borders.

But Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Saturday that his country would not be bound by the agreement. Egypt's cooperation is essential if the smuggling is to be stopped.

As Israel's Security Cabinet met Saturday evening, airstrikes continued. Walls shook and windows trembled in the southern Gaza border town of Rafah as fighter jets soared above head, apparently focusing their missiles on the no man's land with Egypt where many suspected smuggling tunnels lie.

But all was quiet after Olmert's announcement for the first time in three weeks, residents said, giving them a chance to sleep.

A total of 13 Palestinians were killed in battles throughout Gaza Saturday, Palestinian medics said.

John Ging, the top UN official in Gaza, condemned the attack on Beit Lahiya that killed the two boys -- the latest in a series of Israeli shellings that have struck UN installations.

"The question that has to be asked is for all those children and all those innocent people who have been killed in this conflict. Were they war crimes? Were they war crimes that resulted in the deaths of the innocents during this conflict? That question has to be answered," he said.

The Israeli army said it was launching a high-level investigation into the shelling, as well as four other attacks that hit civilian targets, including the UN headquarters in Gaza. The army investigation also includes the shelling of a hospital, a media center and the home of a well-known doctor.

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