NO CEASE FIRE (UPDATED)

Hamas Rejects Palestinian Leader's Pleas for Cease-Fire
Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza dismissed on Tuesday a call from interim Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to halt attacks in the run-up to a Jan. 9 election to replace Arafat. “This subject is not under discussion in Hamas,” said Ismail Haniyeh, a leader if the Islamic group. Another leader, Mahmoud Zahar, said first Israel must stop its attacks, and then Hamas would consider how to respond. Islamic Jihad leader Sheik Nafez Azzam said it was “too early” to consider a cease-fire. “The top priority is to confront the (Israeli) occupation and its aggression,” he said.

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Nablus Al-Aqsa commander Nasser Juma'a and senior Islamic Jihad political spokesperson Abu Khaled both said their organizations are ready to call a ceasefire until Jan. 9, although beyond the borders of pre-1967 Israel, they say, the uprising will continue with "resistance as usual." "We will refrain from attacks inside Israel for 60 days so that we will not be accused of destroying the democratic process inside Palestine," said Abu Khaled. Meanwhile, senior Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri said in Gaza, "We don't care what the others say. Whenever there is a need to defend our people, we will do so." (Toronto Star)

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Gaza representatives also rejected Abbas's request for a cease-fire ahead of PA elections.