VOA News
29 Jun 2003, 15:29 UTC
The Palestinian militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad have announced an immediate three-month suspension of attacks against Israel.
But a top Israeli official, Foreign Ministry Deputy Gideon Meir, dismissed the truce announcement, saying militants will use the lull to regroup for more attacks against the Jewish state. There has been no official Israeli government statement on the truce.
Earlier Sunday, Palestinian officials said a ceasefire announcement could be delayed 24-48 hours while a third militant group, Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, decided whether to go along with the ceasefire.
The Associated Press quotes Fatah officials as saying they are not yet ready to join the truce.
The ceasefire announcement from Gaza City comes amid Israeli media reports that Israeli troops will begin pulling out of the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoun by Monday.
Under the plan, Israel would end lightning incursions in to Palestinian territories and dismantle checkpoints. In exchange, Palestinian security forces would assume security responsibilities and crack down on militant groups.
The general outlines of the Israeli pullout were agreed to Friday in a meeting between Palestinian officials and Israel's coordinator in the occupied territories.
Some information for this report provided by Reuters.
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