Hamas leader says he's open to talks

JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Hamas leader Ismail Haniya has said he would be willing to negotiate a cease-fire with Israel -- but Israel is reacting coolly.

Speaking by phone to an Israeli television reporter, Haniya said such a deal would call for Hamas to stop firing rockets into Israel and for an end to the Israeli military's targeted killings of Palestinian militants.

Haniya's remarks were first reported Tuesday night. The overture follows a series of punishing Israeli attacks against Palestinian militants in the past two days. At least 11 people have been killed, including a senior leader of the radical Islamist group Islamic Jihad.

But Israeli officials were dismissive of Haniya's comments.

Israeli President Shimon Peres called Haniya's comments a "pathetic attempt to move international attention from the crimes of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad of shooting at innocent civilians."

He said if militants stopped firing rockets, then "Israel will immediately hold its fire, so there is no need for negotiations."

Shaul Mofaz, one of Israel's deputy prime ministers, told Israeli radio "mediation is something to think about, but one thing needs to be made clear: 'til the firing stops, we must continue with the policy that we are taking in Gaza and not stop for even one hour."

Israel has refused to negotiate with Hamas, which took control of Gaza in June, until it agrees to submit to international benchmarks including the renouncing of violence and recognition of the Jewish state. Learn more about Hamas »

Since June, Gaza has been living under tough economic sanctions put in place by Israel and the international community, prompting an increasingly dire humanitarian situation in the coastal region of 1.5 million people.

According to the Israeli military, more than 3,600 rockets and mortars have been fired from Gaza into Israel since Israel pulled out its troops and settlements from Gaza in 2005. The military said the number of rocket attacks has more than doubled since Hamas seized control of Gaza in June.

Hamas rockets, however, are very inaccurate and rarely cause serious damage or casualties.

Last week Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi warned that a stronger military operation in Gaza is increasingly likely because the ongoing limited operations have not stopped the rocket attacks.

"We will come to the point where we will have to carry out the big operation," Ashkenazi said December 12.

The situation threatens to overshadow the burgeoning peace process that was restarted after last month's peace talks in the U.S., where Israeli and Palestinian leaders pledged to negotiate a final-status agreement by the end of 2008. E-mail to a friend

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