Israel, Militants Agree To Truce

Israel and the Palestinians agreed on Sunday to halt their latest round of violence after Islamic Jihad militants pledge to end a wave of rocket attacks against southern Israel, Palestinian officials said.

The development followed intense U.S. and Israeli pressure on Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to rein in the militants. Israeli officials replied that if the militants stop their attacks, Israel would have no reason to hit back.

Militant groups planned a secret meeting later Sunday to affirm the latest cease-fire, but a shootout in the West Bank threatened to torpedo the efforts once again.

Israeli forces encircled a house in the West Bank town of Qabatiyeh after sundown Sunday and exchanged fire with two Islamic Jihad militants inside, Palestinian witnesses said. It was not clear if there were casualties.

They said one of the two was wanted by Israel for planning a suicide bombing in the Israeli town of Hadera last week that killed five Israelis. The Israeli military had no immediate comment.

Militants in Gaza have retaliated for such Israeli raids in the West Bank by firing homemade rockets at Israel, triggering Israeli retaliation. Since the bombing, Israel has targeted Islamic Jihad militants in air strikes, killing eight Palestinians--three of them bystanders--and fired artillery shells at rocket launching areas in Gaza.

At stake for the Palestinians is the economic survival of Gaza. With violence simmering, Israel has kept a tight hold on the exits from the coastal strip, citing security concerns.

The main Rafah crossing from Gaza to Egypt has been closed for most of the time since Israel withdrew from Gaza last month in the absence of an agreement on how to handle security. Vital cargo and worker crossings with Israel have also been closed off and on by the Israelis. On Sunday it reopened two of them, shut since the Hadera attack on Wednesday.

Talks on the Rafah crossing were to resume Sunday night, Israeli officials said. Palestinians complain that the Gaza economy is badly squeezed by the closed crossings, causing widespread hardship.

The announcement of an informal truce came as Danny Arditi, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's counterterrorism adviser, said al Qaeda operatives apparently infiltrated into Gaza last month during several days of chaos following Israel's pullout from Gaza.

Also, Israeli security said three Gaza militants crawled through tunnels into Egypt and infiltrated into Israel, planning to set up a cell in the West Bank to fire rockets at Israeli cities, similar to frequent rocket barrages from Gaza.

The three were arrested Oct. 5, security officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because publication of their names is forbidden.

The confusion on the border allowed thousands of people to cross between Egypt and Gaza unhindered, Arditi told Army Radio. "The breaching of the border apparently allowed al Qaeda and all kinds of international Jihad elements to enter the Gaza Strip," Arditi said.

During his weekly Cabinet meeting Sunday, Sharon promised "severe" retaliation if attacks on Israel continue. Palestinian Interior Ministry officials said Sunday the militants had agreed to halt the rocket fire. They spoke on condition of anonymity pending an official announcement later in the day.

Nabil Abu Rdeneh, a top adviser to Abbas, said Israel and the Palestinians agreed to stop the latest hostilities after U.S. intervention.

"Both sides have agreed to stop the escalation," he said.

U.S. Embassy spokesman Stewart Tuttle said American officials were not involved in brokering the agreement but noted the U.S. has urged both sides to stop the violence.

An Israeli government official said "there appears to be an understanding" for both sides to halt the fighting, though no official agreement is in place. He declined to be identified because he was not authorized to discuss the matter. He said Israel would stop its operations when the Palestinians stop their attacks.

Earlier Sunday, Mofaz threatened to wage war on Islamic Jihad until its capabilities are wiped out.

"We are carrying out a broad operation against terrorism, a broad operation against the Islamic Jihad infrastructure in light of Islamic Jihad's intention to continue with suicide bombings," Mofaz said.