Hamas says Gaza truce deal expected in next 3 days (Reuters)

Will this Peace truce last in many years to come?

GAZA, Feb 13 (Reuters) - An Egyptian-mediated truce agreement in Gaza between Israel and Hamas would most likely be announced in the next three days, the Islamist group said.

"Most of the obstacles that prevented us from reaching an agreement were resolved and an announcement of a deal is expected within three days," Taher al-Nono, a member of Hamas's negotiating team in Cairo, told Reuters.

Nono said the agreement would ensure the end of cross-border violence between Palestinian militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and Israel as well as the opening of the territory's border crossings.

Israeli officials had no immediate comment.

Egypt, which has been trying to broker a truce deal between Israel and Hamas, said earlier on Thursday it would announce "positive" results coming from the talks in the coming hours.

A longer term truce deal would take the place of a shaky Jan. 18 ceasefire, declared separately by both sides, that ended Israel's 22-day military offensive against Hamas Islamists in the Gaza Strip.

About 1,300 Palestinians were killed in the Israeli offensive. Fourteen Israelis have died since Dec. 27, when the fighting broke out.

Egypt has proposed a staged process beginning with a ceasefire declaration, a deal to exchange prisoners, the opening of Gaza's border crossings with Israel and with Egypt and reconciliation talks between rival Palestinian factions.

Hamas has demanded Israel free 1,400 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier captured by Gaza militants in a cross-border raid in 2006. Diplomats said Israel was likely to free closer to 1,000.

Nono said after meeting with Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman "significant progress" had been made on the key issues of reaching a truce with Israel, Gaza's reconstruction and the opening of the territory's border crossings.

Israel tightened a blockade on the Gaza Strip after Hamas Islamists seized the enclave in 2007 from forces loyal to Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Nona added that Egypt invited the leaders of Palestinian factions to Cairo on Feb. 22 for reconciliation talks.

© REUTERS 2009