Hamas holds Israel responsible for truce delay

A Hamas official said on Tuesday that Egyptian efforts to broker a truce with Israel had been held up because the Israeli government had yet to respond to proposals, indicating there would be no ceasefire until Wednesday at the earliest. "The Israeli side has not responded yet, so we will not hold a (news) conference this evening and must wait until tomorrow," Ezzat al-Rishq, a senior Hamas leader, told reporters. "The truce is now held up because we are waiting for the Israeli side to respond," he added. An Egyptian official had earlier said Cairo was hopeful of an agreement on Tuesday following a statement by Ayman Taha, another Hamas official that said a ceasefire had been reached and would go into effect within hours. Osama Hamdan, another leading Hamas official, later confirmed that no agreement had been reached. "The situation to this point is that there is no agreement. Our people and our resistance are ready for all possibilities," he told Al Jazeera television, speaking from Beirut. "The resistance is capable of continuing [the war] and we have surprises," he said. "We insist on our conditions for a truce." Website of the Israeli newspaper Maarif on Wednesday quoted an Israeli official as saying that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has "suddenly" delayed decision on accepting the terms suggested by Egypt for the expected truce. The Israeli official said Cairo was waiting for Netanyahu's response on Tuesday night, but the Israeli PM decided to take more time at the aim of putting exerting more pressure on Hamas in order to force some terms on the Palestinian armed groups which they don't agree on. US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton held a late-night meeting with Netanyahu after rushing to the region from Cambodia, where she had accompanied President Barack Obama on a visit. ''The goal must be a durable outcome that promotes regional stability and advances the security and legitimate aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians alike," she said at a news conference with Netanyahu. Netanyahu said Israel would welcome a diplomatic solution to the crisis but threatened further military activity, saying he was ready to take "whatever action" is necessary. The comments came after conflicting reports on whether a deal was imminent.