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Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni spoke with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice spoke during the weekend. (AP file)
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| By Associated Press June 27, 2006 |
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The Bush administration demanded the release of an abducted Israeli soldier and urged Israel and the Palestinians to exercise restraint amid growing tensions in the Gaza Strip.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice spoke during the weekend with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, while American diplomats conferred with Egyptian, Israeli and Palestinian officials.
"There are a lot of different parties working to resolve the issue," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. "But the bottom line is we call upon this individual to be released immediately."
Israel massed troops Monday along the Gaza border in preparation for what Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said would be a "broad and ongoing" operation against Palestinian militants after the abduction of the Israeli soldier, Cpl. Gilad Shalit.
Three Palestinian groups purporting to hold him demanded the release from Israeli prisons of women and other prisoners younger than 18 years old.
Through McCormack, the State Department condemned the abduction.
"What we would urge is that all sides exercise restraint and avoid steps which further escalate the situation," the State Department spokesman said. "As we have said all along, it is the responsibility of the Palestinian Authority government to stop all acts of violence."
The Authority is dominated by Hamas, a Palestinian group designated by the State Department as a terrorist organization. The Bush administration has been trying to work around Hamas by dealing as much as possible with the more moderate Abbas.
"I think President Abbas wants to see this individual released, and certainly the secretary reinforced that idea as well," McCormack said.
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