A new round of talks between Egypt and the Palestinian groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad ended yesterday without agreement on striking a truce with Israel.

Both Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they rejected a cease-fire unless Israel stopped all raids in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, ended its Gaza blockade and reopened the coastal territory’s border crossings.

“We stressed our position that calm must be simultaneous, reciprocal and comprehensive,” said Hamas spokesman Ayman Taha.

Over the past two weeks, Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip have refrained from carrying out rocket attacks against Israel.

Israel, denying it is involved in cease-fire negotiations but saying it would have no reason to strike Hamas if salvoes ceased, has stopped targeting the group’s Gaza fighters in what appears to be a de facto truce between the two enemies.

Islamic Jihad leader Khader Habib, whose group has continued to fire rockets at Israel from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, told Reuters: “The Zionist occupation wanted calm to be limited to Gaza and we say any calm must be comprehensive and reciprocal.” Egypt, at US behest, has been trying to negotiate a cessation of hostilities between Israel and the fighters from the Gaza Strip, territory Hamas seized in June from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah faction.

The cross-border violence has threatened US-brokered peace talks between Abbas and Israel, which Washington hopes can result in a deal before President George W. Bush leaves office in January.

The latest truce talks, which also looked at the prospects of reopening the Rafah border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, were held on the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing.

The talks were attended by Hamas official Jamal Abu Hashem and Khaled Al-Batsh of Islamic Jihad. Gen. Mohamed Ibrahim, a senior aide to intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, and another unidentified official represented Egypt. Both sides agreed to resume discussions but did not set a date for the next meeting, one source said.

In addition to wanting an end to Israeli raids and the reopening of the Gaza border crossing, Hamas has demanded a say in running the crossings, a condition that Israel rejects.

PHOTO CAPTION

Hamas fighters and supporters demonstrate in the central Gaza Strip on March 7, 2008.

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