Jerusalem, Jan. 15 : The militant outfit Hamas has announced that it has accepted the Egyptian cease-fire initiative "in principle" and that it was now awaiting Israel''s response.
According to the Jerusalem Post, the announcement came after a Hamas delegation concluded two days of marathon talks with representatives of the Egyptian General Intelligence Service in Cairo.
Hamas denied reports in the Egyptian media to the effect that it had accepted the Egyptian initiative unconditionally.
Jerusalem had no formal response on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defense Minister Ehud Barak were expected to discuss the developments at a meeting Wednesday night.