Full cease-fire deal stalls at hands of Palestinian factions

Palestinian failed to reach an agreement on Sunday on a truce with Israel, after several days of talks in Cairo.

The Egyptian hosts prodded the factions to strike a deal, and Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia also joined the discussions held among a dozen factions. But Hamas and Islamic Jihad, groups that have carried out most of the suicide bombings in Israel, rejected calls for a complete cease-fire.

"Hamas is not ready to make a comprehensive cease-fire," said Muhammad Nazzal, a Hamas leader.

The failure of the Palestinian factions to reach an agreement was a setback for Qureia, who is seeking to arrange talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

Qureia he wants such a meeting to produce tangible results, and he was hoping to see the Israeli leader with a Palestinian cease-fire pledge in hand.

Top to Sharon and Qureia met again on Sunday to work on preparations for talks between the prime ministers. But there was no sign that a meeting was likely.

The Fatah movement, which is headed by Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, and includes Qureia, was seeking a complete cease-fire with Israel as part of an effort to restart the Middle East peace plan known as the road map.

The Egyptians, who have brokered meetings between Palestinian factions on several occasions during the Palestinian uprising, also supported this position.

But Hamas and Islamic Jihad were among several groups that said they would accept only a limited truce, and they insisted that Israel meet several conditions, including an end to military raids in Palestinian areas, delegates said.

The groups indicated a willingness to halt suicide bombings and other attacks inside Israel's 1967 borders. But they said they would not call off attacks on Israeli settlers and soldiers in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

"If indeed there is calm and there is no terror, Israel will make every effort to avoid taking action against terrorists," Sharon said on Sunday.

"If the terror attacks continue, Israel, feeling itself responsible for the security of its citizens, will surely take action," he said.