Israeli forces take over abandoned settlements in northern Gaza CAIRO: Egypt s efforts to defuse the worsening Palestinian-Israeli crisis have ground to a halt because of Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal s refusal to press for the unconditional release of an Israeli soldier and growing mistrust between Egypt and Hamas, Egyptian and Palestinian officials said. Israeli forces on Thursday, meanwhile, took over the remains of three abandoned Jewish settlements in northern Gaza and clashed with gunmen on the outskirts of a Palestinian town, carving out a temporary buffer zone to prevent Palestinian militants from firing rockets at Israeli towns and cities. The move marked an expansion of Israel s largest operation in Gaza since Israel s withdrawal from the coastal territory nearly a year ago. At least six Palestinians were killed in fighting Thursday. Officials decided to step up the offensive, launched last week in response to the capture of an Israeli soldier, after Palestinian militants from the ruling Hamas party fired two upgraded rockets into the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon. No one was hurt, but the rockets were the first to reach the city of 110,000, infuriating Israeli leaders. A senior government official said Israeli troops would enter the densely populated towns of Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun, which militants often use to launch rockets. Speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn t authorized to discuss military plans, he said the incursions would be temporary. We are doing the utmost effort ... to avoid civilian casualties, said Israeli Brig. Gen. Ido Nehushtan. Really there is no other way of operating against terrorists who are operating inside their own civilian populations. At midday, an Associated Press reporter accompanying the Israeli troops said the forces had reached the outskirts of Beit Lahiya and taken over a two-story house with a family inside. An Israeli tank and several armored vehicles surrounded the house. The family was confined to the ground floor. Gunshots and tank fire rang out in the area, and Palestinian medics said one Palestinian was killed in a shootout. Meshaal, the Syria-based Hamas leader, is now turning his attention to mediation by the Islamic-oriented government of Turkey, which has stepped up diplomacy in an effort to end the standoff, the Palestinian officials said Wednesday. Israel has accused Meshaal of being the mastermind behind the late June capture of the Israeli soldier, something he denies. Late Wednesday, Meshaal s top aide denied rumors that the Hamas leader had left Syria. Some Palestinian and Israeli media had said Meshaal left for Algeria after a confrontation with Syrian authorities over how to negotiate the Israeli soldier s release. There is no one from the [Hamas] political bureau or [Meshaal] in Algeria. Not any one of them has left for Algeria, said top Hamas adviser Moussa Abu Marzouk on the pan-Arab Al-Arabiya TV channel. The reports on Meshaal s alleged departure came after days of silence from the Hamas office in Damascus, which did not answer phone calls Wednesday. Abu Marzouk denied any dispute with Syrian authorities regarding the Israeli soldier. He is not an abducted soldier but a prisoner captured on the battlefield, he added. An Egyptian official speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue said Meshaal has disagreed with the Egyptians about what tactics they should apply in negotiations with Israel. Meshaal has repeatedly turned down an invitation by Egypt s intelligence director and chief negotiator, Omar Suleiman, to come to Cairo for thorough discussions of the standoff, said one. The Egyptian side thinks time is short and Hamas should release the soldier and negotiate later to avoid a severe Israeli retaliation, but the Hamas leader has pressed for Israel to first give in to at least some Hamas demands, the Egyptian official said. On Wednesday, Jordan s King Abdullah II also warned Palestinians against an escalation of the situation in the Gaza Strip. In a telephone call to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, Abdullah expressed deep concern about the possible repercussions on civilians in Gaza, the official Jordanian news agency reported. Hamas leaders close to Meshaal have said repeatedly that while Meshaal has no direct role in the crisis, they believe that Israel must agree to concessions to win the soldier s release. Mohammed Beseiony, Egypt s former ambassador to Israel, acknowledged that the Egyptian-Hamas contacts on the soldier have come to a halt, although he said that was because of the abductors decision. We are doing our best to resolve this conflict, because without a peaceful resolution, the whole region will be in a catastrophe, he told The Associated Press. But, I may say, the issue is very difficult. Egypt has long played a key role as a mediator between the Palestinian Authority and militant groups. Last year, it helped persuade the Palestinian factions to sign a truce declaration, virtually promising to halt their attacks against Israel. Meanwhile, Hamas seems to have shifted its interests to mediation by the Islamic-oriented government in Turkey. On Monday, Meshaal met in Damascus with Ahmet Davudoglu, the adviser to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. A Palestinian official in Damascus said Meshaal told Davudoglu that Hamas was ready to be flexible. Hamas main concern is the interest of the Palestinian people, but Israel should be ready to negotiate too, said the official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity. Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul with Davudoglu, arrived in Washington on Wednesday for talks on the crisis with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Turkish papers said Davudoglu also met in Damascus with Syrian President Bashar Assad, and told him that his influence on the Palestinians was obvious and he should use it responsibly. Erdogan has also spoken by telephone with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniya. Agencies
