Breaking: Face to Face Ceasefire Talks Between Hamas and Israel?

Okay...there's a story here from Breitbart that I wanted to put up about how the Israelis are ready to turn up the degree of aggression in Gaza and then BAM! I hear on the network news that direct ceasefire talks between Hamas and Israel, brokered by Egypt, could happen as soon as tomorrow. Let's start with the heartbreaking rumor of the ceasefire talks from a report up at ABC News:

Sources in Jerusalem say Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has indicated his willingess to send a delegation to Cairo, Egypt, in the next few days to discuss the terms of a possible deal. Those discussions would be with Egyptian officials who, it is presumed, would mediate with Hamas representatives who have arrived in Cairo from Syria several days ago.
A critical part of any deal appears to be the posting of foreign troops or engineers on the Egyptian side of the border with Gaza to ensure that Hamas does not reconstruct its network of tunnels necessary to rearm itself.

Now, this isn't all that different from the DEBKA report that I put up last night but what is shocking about it is the speed to the talks - tomorrow? or the next day? Also, there has been no mention at all about face-to-face meetings between Hamas and Israel - traditionally, truces or ceasefires between these two enemies is brokered completely by the third country with shuttling of discussions back and forth.

Anyway, it is heartbreaking news - this may have been Israel's last chance to either take out Hamas or severely cripple it if they could have shoved world opinion aside but as I had predicted, they cannot. I have come to the conclusion that the only force Israel can use against Hamas would have to be precipated by a major attack on Israel by Hamas that killed huge numbers of Israelis. Who knows if these ceasefire talks will actually happen the next couple of days but the Israelis certainly have shown their hand that they indeed have had enough of fighting.

Now, here's an excerpt from an earlier post today about Israel's desire to ratchet up the attack on Hamas:

Israel on Wednesday approved an even tougher war on Hamas, warning residents to flee southern Gaza ahead of planned bombing of cross-border tunnels, as the Palestinian death toll passed 700.

Olmert chaired the security cabinet meeting in Jerusalem which "approved continuing the ground offensive, including a third stage that would broaden it by pushing deeper into populated areas," a senior defence official said.The final decision will be left with Barak, the official added.

I'm holding out some hope that the Israelis are using the ceasefire talks/rumors as a bit of a buffer on international pressure as they go into to surgically remove some top Hamas targets - at least I hope the Israelis have demands that get them EVERYTHING they want out of a ceasefire.

Israel approves tougher war on Hamas

Israel on Wednesday approved an even tougher war on Hamas, warning residents to flee southern Gaza ahead of planned bombing of cross-border tunnels, as the Palestinian death toll passed 700. After a brief lull to allow Gaza's beleaguered population to hunt for food and fuel, Defence Minister Ehud Barak was given the green light by the security cabinet to order a deeper offensive into Gaza towns as part of the campaign to halt Hamas cross-border rocket attacks.But Barak has also decided to send an envoy to Cairo on Thursday to get details on an Egyptian ceasefire plan, which secured widespread international backing amid mounting concern about the scale of the civilian casualties.Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he hoped the talks would "lead to conditions which will allow" the end of the Israeli offensive, which began on December 27 and has so far killed 702 Palestinians and wounded 3,100, Gaza medics say.

Olmert chaired the security cabinet meeting in Jerusalem which "approved continuing the ground offensive, including a third stage that would broaden it by pushing deeper into populated areas," a senior defence official said.The final decision will be left with Barak, the official added.Israeli shelling and air attacks around Gaza City were halted for three hours as a humanitarian gesture. Hamas also halted rocket attacks. People and cars quickly filled the streets of Gaza City and long queues formed outside bakeries which soon ran out of bread. Aid groups sent dozens of truckloads of food and fuel across the border during the truce. But the fighting quickly resumed, inflicting new deaths.A man, his three sons and a nephew were killed in one attack at the Jabaliya refugee camp and an air strike killed two men in Khan Yunis on Wednesday night, medics said.