VOA News
27 Jun 2003, 14:35 UTC
Palestinian militant leaders say they have agreed to suspend attacks against Israelis for three months.
Confirmation of an agreement came Friday, after several days of speculation that a truce was near.
However, officials close to the talks say a formal truce announcement will not come until Sunday.
The agreement, which was drafted by the three main Palestinian factions, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, calls for a three-month cease-fire in exchange for an end to Israeli military strikes on Palestinians.
The breakthrough comes ahead of a visit to the region Saturday by President Bush's national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice. Ms. Rice will hold talks with Israeli and Palestinian officials in an effort to move peace efforts forward.
Palestinian and Israeli security officials are also said to be making "significant progress" in talks aimed at turning over parts of the Gaza Strip and West Bank to Palestinian control.
The unidentified official made the comment Friday after the latest meeting between the Palestinian security chief, Mohammed Dahlan, and the coordinator of Israeli activities in the Palestinian territories, General Amos Gilad.
U.S. Middle East envoy John Wolf and the U.S. ambassador to Israel, Daniel Kurtzer, also were present at the talks.
Meanwhile, the violence continued Friday when Israeli forces killed three Palestinian militants and a civilian during a raid on a house in the Gaza City area. One Israeli soldier died during the raid at the home of the brother of a senior Hamas militant. The militant, Adnan al-Ghul, was arrested.
Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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