Gaza City, June 14: The Islamist movement Hamas today rejected the possibility of a ceasefire with Israel after one of the bloodiest weeks in their 32-month-old conflict. "Hamas is rejecting any call for ceasefire under occupation," senior Hamas leader Abdul Aziz al-Rantissi said. "The word ceasefire is not in our dictionary."
"We are being attacked, the Palestinian people, our land, our religious sites are being attacked by Zionist terrorists. This is a situation of self-defence and we will continue to defend ourselves," he said. Contacts were reported between Palestinian officials and Hamas on a possible truce amid reports Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had proposed a three-day ceasefire with the hardline movement. Hamas' smaller rival, Islamic Jihad, also rejected the proposal, describing it as "trick". Bureau Report