Israel Cabinet To Weigh Gaza Ceasefire Today

JERUSALEM: The Israeli security cabinet is to convene today to decide on an Egyptian proposal for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, while Israeli bombardment was continuing on Friday.

Israel now is under huge pressure as feverish diplomacy in the past week calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, where more than 1,150 Palestinians have been killed and thousands wounded in three weeks of war.

The Israeli cabinet will examine the result of negotiations in Cairo with Egyptian officials, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor told media late Friday.

Israel said on Friday its military actions could be "in the final act." "Hopefully, we're in the final act," Olmert's spokesman Mark Regev said.

Meanwhile, Israeli prime minister's office released a statement saying "significant progress was made during talks Israeli officials held with the Egyptian intelligence chief."

The statement was released shortly after Amos Gilad, head of the Israeli Defense Ministry's Diplomatic-Security Bureau, returned home from Cairo and briefed Defense Minister Ehud Barak on the discussions.

Asked about a report by local daily that Israeli cabinet will vote on Saturday over whether to enact a "unilateral ceasefire" with Hamas in Gaza, Palmor said "I can not confirm the report at this point."

President Hosni Mubarak has presented a three-point proposal, that calls for an immediate ceasefire for a limited period to allow humanitarian aid to reach Gaza, home to 1.5 million Palestinians, and give Egypt time to continue its efforts to help reach a lasting truce.

Egypt would invite both Israel and the Palestinians for negotiations and help resume inter-Palestinian reconciliation talks, according to the proposal.

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