United States Middle East envoy George Mitchell continues talks in the Mideast meeting on Saturday with Jordan's King Abdullah. Mitchell had already met with senior Israeli politicians and with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, and he plans to return to Cairo Sunday after meeting with Saudi leaders in Riyadh.
Mitchell hopes to obtain a bonafide ceasefire agreement in Gaza following the IDF's three-week Cast Lead operation. Terrorists have continued intermittent attacks on Israel since the operation ended, and Israel has retaliated with isolated air strikes, but both sides have expressed interest in a long-term ceasefire.
King Abdullah told Mitchell that negotiations must be held “on basis of a two-state solution.” Israel and the PA should resume talks towards the creation of a PA state in Judea, Samaria and Gaza immediately, he said.
He promoted the 2002 Saudi Initiative, which offers Arab recognition of Israel in exchange for a full Israeli retreat to the 1949 armistice line, the release of all terrorist prisoners and Israeli citizenship for millions of Arabs whose grandparents and great-grandparents fled Israel during the 1948 War of Independence.
Mitchell assured the king that the U.S. is committed to “actively and aggressively” seeking a peace deal.
U.S. Pledges $20 Million to Gaza
Mitchell announced Friday that the U.S. will contribute over $20 million in aid to Gaza. The aid will be distributed by the United Nations and the Red Cross and is earmarked for food and medicine for needy Gaza Arabs and temporary housing for those whose houses were damaged during Cast Lead.
The U.N. has issued an appeal for $613 million to help repair damage to Gaza buildings and infrastructure. The Hamas terrorist group leading Gaza says approximately $2 billion will be needed to repair all of the damage.
Egypt Installs Sensors, Cameras on Gaza Border
As diplomatic attempts to reach a ceasefire continued, the Egyptian army began installing motion sensors and cameras along its border with Gaza. Egyptian officials told Reuters that they had begun installing the equipment on Thursday with help from United States, French and German experts.
The sensors are meant to detect subterranean construction, including the digging of new tunnels. Hundreds of tunnels were destroyed during Cast Lead, but Gaza terrorists say some have since been rebuilt.
Destroying the tunnels, which have been used to import weapons and rockets along with other goods, was a central goal in Cast Lead, which saw several bombing runs along the Gaza-Egypt border. As the operation wound down, several European Union leaders committed to fight weapons smuggling along the border as a step towards a ceasefire.
However, former National Securtiy Council director Giora Eiland has warned that there is no way to stop smuggling at the border between Gaza and Egypt without Cairo establishing a security zone in which no one would be allowed to enter.