If this is true, it’s not good:
The report quoted a “senior Palestinian source” as saying that if the 30-day [trial] period proves successful, Israel will assent to the Egyptian calm initiative, including the cessation of ground and air attacks in the Gaza Strip and refraining from retaliating for the terror attack at the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva last week.
There can’t be peace between Israel and Hamas. Hamas exists for the destruction of Israel. If Hamas is allowed to continue existing, it will continue trying to destroy Israel. Israel should keep up the pressure until Hamas is gone.
The timing of the proposal is par for the course; Hamas often offers a cease-fire immediately after a particularly horrible outrage like the Merkaz haRav massacre.
Another London-based pan-Arab daily, Al Hayat, quoted an Egyptian source as saying that the specific Israeli conditions for the 30-days test period included a complete halt of rocket attacks against Israel and on construction of smuggling tunnels along the Gaza-Egypt border.
According to the source, [Defense Ministry official Amos] Gilad emphasized that Israel agreed to the calm on the condition that it would not be used by Palestinians for rearmament.
They would never do that, would they?
On Monday, both Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak emphatically denied there was any kind of negotiating process with Hamas, and insisted that the IDF “retained its freedom of action” in the Strip. — Jerusalem Post
Imagine my relief. Keep in mind that the ‘negotiating process’ is with Egypt, not directly with Hamas.