Israel, Palestinians seek deal to end fighting

Security officials on both sides have begun initial contacts expected to accelerate in coming days, the sources said.

The new bid to halt the fighting comes after Secretary of State Colin Powell said Washington hoped Israeli would quickly end its massive military campaign in the northern Gaza Strip without expanding the operation. The sources said the aim of the discussions is for the army to pull back its forces while the Palestinian Authority takes steps to stop Hamas rocket fire that triggered Israel's biggest offensive in the territory in four years of conflict.

A senior security source said Israeli officials remained skeptical of the ability and willingness of Palestinian security services to confront Hamas militants. "Their record in this area is not good," the source said.

Israel launched its Gaza campaign after a Hamas rocket attack killed two Israeli toddlers in a border town on Wednesday. Since then, 67 Palestinians and three Israelis have been killed in and around northern Gaza.

Official contacts between the two sides to end the fighting appears to go against Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's strategy of avoiding talks with Palestinian Authority officials and taking a go-it-alone approach.

Palestinian cabinet minister Saeb Erekat said: "I have no knowledge of such contacts but the position of the Palestinian Authority has been consistent in calling upon Israel to resume peace negotiations immediately and speak to the Palestinian Authority instead of destroying it."

AFP adds: The UN Security Council was set to vote yesterday on a draft resolution calling for Israel to pull its troops out of Gaza after a huge onslaught that has left almost 80 Palestinians dead in less than a week.

The resolution, sponsored by Algeria and debated at the UN on Monday, was criticised by Israel's top ally the United States, which labelled it "one more step on the road to nowhere."

But US Secretary of State Colin Powell said he hoped that Israel's offensive in the northern Gaza Strip, one of the deadliest operations against Palestinians since the start of the Intifada four years ago, would end soon.

Powell repeated the US position that Israel had a right to defend itself, but called on Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to use a proportionate response to Palestinian rocket attacks.