Egypt holds talks with Gaza Islamists on truce

By Yusri Mohamed

ISMAILIA, Egypt (Reuters) - Egypt held talks on Saturday with representatives of Hamas and Islamic Jihad from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, part of a push for a truce between the militant groups and Israel, officials said.

The talks were held in government offices on the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza, and attended by Khaled al-Batsh of Islamic Jihad and Hamas official Jamal Abu Hashem, Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said.

Ismail Haniyeh, who heads Hamas's government in the Gaza Strip, said they will listen to an Israeli proposal relayed by Cairo during the talks, but said "the final decision will be formed in accordance to achieving the highest interest of the Palestinian people".

With U.S. backing, Egypt has been trying to negotiate a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Gaza militants who fire rockets across the border into the Jewish state.

Barhoum said the Egyptians had informed the Palestinians of consultations "with several parties", and that the Palestinians would now hold consultations at home.

An Egyptian source close to the talks said the Palestinian delegation called for the release of 36 members of Hamas detained in Egypt after Palestinian militants breached the border in January.

Haniyeh said the presence of Palestinian prisoners in Egypt was wrong "especially if those in detention are men of resistance. This situation is not normal and should be corrected ... through the immediate release of all prisoners".

Barhoum said the Egyptians had promised to release the Gazan detainees in the near future.