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The cabinet on Saturday night convened at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, to vote on a unilateral cease-fire deal which could end Operation Cast Lead three weeks after it began.The cabinet is expected to back an Egyptian-brokered proposal for a 10-day cease-fire with no sign of a commitment by Hamas to stop the rocket fire on southern Israel which sparked the conflict.Before the meeting, Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Saturday praised IDF troops for their performance in Operation Cast Lead against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.Speaking to paratroopers and reserve commanders in the South, the defense minister added that the operation had "come very close to meeting [its] targets."He stressed that it was up to the army to be prepared for all possible outcomes.The cabinet was convening on Saturday night in order to decide whether to adopt a unilateral cease-fire.According to a statement released by the Prime Minister's Office, "Significant progress was made during talks [Israeli officials] held with the Egyptian intelligence chief.""Over the weekend the prime minister and the defense minister will discuss the offered draft. Following the discussion, the security cabinet will be convened on Saturday evening to decide whether it should be adopted," the statement said.The PMO statement was released shortly after Amos Gilad, the head of the Defense Ministry's Diplomatic-Security Bureau, returned from Cairo and briefed Barak on the outcome of the discussions. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's chief diplomatic adviser Shalom Turgeman accompanied Gilad in Egypt.A unilateral decision is likely after Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal rejected Israel's conditions for a truce and called on all Arab countries to cut ties with the Jewish state during a summit of Arab leaders in Doha, Qatar. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Syrian President Bashar Assad gave Mashaal their full backing, but significantly, both Egypt and Saudi Arabia boycotted the summit.On Friday night, meanwhile, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted a non-binding resolution demanding an "immediate and durable and fully respected cease fire" in Gaza.The resolution reiterated the legally-binding UN Security Council resolution adopted last Thursday.The vote was 142-4 with eight abstentions, with Israel, the United States, Nauru and Venezuela voting against the resolution, because they hoped for a stronger statement.AP and Herb Keinon contributed to this report.
By JPOST.COM STAFF
As in the days of Noah...
