Netanyahu shuns talks

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday his government would not engage in talks aimed at ending the conflict in Gaza until the rocket attacks into Israeli territory came to an end.

The remarks were made ahead of a Sunday deadline. Palestinian negotiators in Cairo have said they will also abandon the talks unless Israel sends a negotiating team by 1300 (UTC Sunday).

"Israel will not engage in negotiations under fire, and will continue to act in every way to change the current reality and to bring quiet to all of its citizens," Netanyahu told a cabinet meeting at the defense ministry in Tel Aviv, according to the prime minister's office.

The talks ran into problems after Israel withdrew its negotiation team on Friday after the expiry of a three-day ceasefire, accusing Hamas of violating the truce. Netanyahu said on Sunday there was now no foreseeable end to the Israeli air, land and sea operation, which began on July 8.

"The operation will continue until its objective - the restoration of quiet over a protracted period - is achieved," Netanyahu said. "I said at the beginning and throughout the operation - it will take time, and stamina is required."

Both sides remained bitterly opposed in the indirect negotiations, which have been conducted with Egyptian intermediaries shuffling between the two parties.

The Palestinian delegates have called for an end to Israel's blockade of Gaza and a major rebuilding program, including a new working port area and airport. Israel wants a total demilitarization of the Gaza Strip.

Hopes narrow on both sides

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said he believed the chance of a renewal of last week's ceasefire was "very slim."

Palestinian health officials say that since the offensive was launched, some 1,893 people have died in the Gaza Strip. Israel, meanwhile, has lost 64 soldiers and three civilians.

Israeli warplanes kept up the pressure of Gaza on Sunday, after overnight attacks that hit 20 targets across the narrow strip of land. Since the truce ended early on Friday, the Israeli military has hit some 150 targets and killed 15 people.

On Sunday, an 11-year-old Palestinian boy was shot dead by Israeli troops in the West Bank, according to medics. Full details of the shooting were not made immediately available.

rc/tj (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)