Egypt PM arrives in Gaza: security source

RAFAH, Palestinian Territories, – Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Qandil arrived in Gaza City on Friday after Israel agreed to halt its campaign against militants in the Hamas-run territory during his brief visit.

“The Egyptian prime minister has arrived at the Rafah crossing and officials from the Palestinian (Hamas) government are welcoming him on the Palestinian side,” a Palestinian source told AFP.

He later travelled on to Gaza City where he was to meet Hamas leaders and hold a press conference, officials said.

Qandil’s visit is expected to last three hours, during which Israel has agreed to halt its aerial campaign “on the condition that during that period there won’t be hostile fire from Gaza into Israel,” a senior Israeli official told AFP.

“Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu has agreed to an Egyptian request to cease fire during the visit to Gaza this morning by the Egyptian prime minister, a visit that is supposed to last some three hours,” the senior official told AFP.

“In our response forwarded to the Egyptians, Israel has said that the IDF (Israeli military) will cease fire on the condition that during that period there won’t be hostile fire from Gaza into Israel.”

There was no comment from Hamas’s armed wing and other militants in Gaza on whether they would also halt fire, and AFP correspondents heard what appeared to be outgoing rocket fire after Qandil’s arrival, though no group immediately claimed responsibility.

Egypt’s Islamist President Mohamed Morsi — who hails from the Muslim Brotherhood movement that gave birth to Hamas — warned on Thursday that Egypt would not accept Israel’s “aggression” in the Gaza Strip.

Morsi has ordered the foreign ministry to summon the Israeli envoy over the attacks, and called for an emergency meeting of Arab League foreign ministers, which is slated to be held in Cairo on Saturday.

Morsi’s spokesman, Yasser Ali, said on Thursday that Qandil “will travel to Gaza to express our support for the Palestinian people and to see what they need.”

The United States called Thursday on Egypt to use its sway with the Palestinians to try to end the violence from Gaza.

“We ask Egypt to use its influence in the region to help de-escalate the situation,” deputy State Department spokesman Mark Toner told journalists.

Ahead of Qandil’s arrival, Israeli warplanes carried out multiple new air strikes on the Palestinian territory, including several hits on Gaza City early Friday, the third day of an intensive campaign which the military has said is aimed at stamping out rocket fire on southern Israel.

“There have been 130 strikes overnight until now,” Hamas interior ministry spokesman Islam Shahwan said, as AFP correspondents in Gaza City reported multiple raids.

Hamas emergency services spokesman Adham Abu Selmiya said the death toll now stood at 19 Palestinians, several of them children, with a further 235 people injured.

The Israeli army said it had carried out 466 air strikes since it launched “Operation Pillar of Defence” on Wednesday afternoon with the targeted killing of Hamas commander Ahmed Jaabari.

The army confirmed that “strikes are continuing,” adding that 11 Palestinian rockets had been fired from Gaza at Israel overnight.

The military said a total of 280 rockets have been fired at the Jewish state from Gaza since Wednesday afternoon, including two that landed near Tel Aviv. Three Israelis were killed on Thursday.

The Israeli air defence system Iron Dome intercepted 131 of those, the military said. – Agence France-Presse