CAIRO, Egypt - The Hamas-led Palestinian government agreed Sunday to an international peace conference with Israel after the Arab League - angered by Israel's military offensive in Gaza - voted to end a financial blockade on the Palestinians.
Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar of Hamas endorsed a statement by Arab foreign ministers calling for the peace conference during a meeting in Cairo to respond to a U.S. veto of a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning the Gaza offensive.
Zahar said the Palestinians had asked for the peace conference "in order to reach just and comprehensive solutions." The acceptance marked the first time the Hamas-led government has indicated it would consider making amends with the Jewish state.
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The Arab League statement said ministers sought a conference to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict "according to international resolutions and the principal of `land for peace.' " Arabs want Hamas to endorse a 2002 Arab initiative that calls for peace in exchange for land seized by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war - the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem.
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