Israel scales back Gaza Strip offensive

By Matthew Tostevin

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel has scaled back an offensive
against Gaza Strip militants to give Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas a chance to stop rocket fire from the territory,
Israeli security sources said on Sunday.

A surge of violence last month has damaged hopes that
Israel’s withdrawal of troops and settlers from Gaza to end 38
years of military rule on September 12 might help revive
negotiations on ending decades of conflict.

Israeli planes and artillery struck at Gaza following
cross-border rocket attacks. Four Gaza militants were killed.

Israeli forces also raided the West Bank to arrest hundreds
of suspected militants. Five gunmen and a teenager were killed
there.

“We are going to suspend for a while some of the larger
scope operations and wait to see the response,” said one senior
Israeli security source. “We want to give the Palestinian
security forces and Abu Mazen (Abbas) an opportunity.”

The sources said Israel would only act against what it
calls “ticking bombs” — when it suspects someone is about to
carry out an attack — or if there is a resumption of rocket
fire from Gaza.

Abbas, also under U.S. pressure to bring militants under
control, began deploying forces late last week to stop fighters
from carrying weapons on Gaza streets and to prevent attacks on
Israel.

There has been no rocket fire for at least four days.

WELCOMED

Top Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat welcomed the Israeli
decision to scale back the offensive.

“We are committed to stop violence against the Israelis
anywhere,” he told Reuters. “We hope that the Israeli
announcement today will reflect an Israeli commitment to stop
violence against Palestinians everywhere.”

The powerful Islamic militant faction Hamas, sworn to
destroying the Jewish state, said it did not trust Israel to
end “aggressive practices” on the ground.

But Hamas has reaffirmed its commitment to a February truce
that smoothed Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and has been
largely popular with Palestinians. A new opinion poll showed
that 62 percent of Palestinians opposed launching attacks from
Gaza.

Abbas is due to visit Washington this month to discuss ways
of pushing forward with a U.S.-backed “road map” for peace
following Israel’s Gaza pullout.

Israel insists that Abbas dismantles militant groups such
as Hamas — a process that the Palestinians are meant to begin
under the road map — before there can be new talks on
Palestinian statehood.

Israel has failed to meet its own road map commitment to
freeze settlement building in the West Bank, strengthening
Palestinian fears that the Gaza withdrawal plan was an Israeli
ruse to strengthen its hold on the West Bank.

Palestinians want a state made up of the Gaza Strip, West
Bank and East Jerusalem, all captured by Israel in the 1967
war.

(Additional reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza;
Mohammed Assadi in Ramallah)