Gaza deal possible, says Blair

2009-01-08 14:20

Paris - International Mideast envoy Tony Blair said on Wednesday that he believes a deal is possible to halt the violence in the Gaza Strip.

The former British prime minister said any agreement should lay out a ceasefire by Israel and Hamas, the closing of tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border and a reopening of border passages.

"I believe it's possible to reach an accord," Blair said on France's Europe-1 radio. "If we can reach a truce, it's a short-term solution. But for the long term, it's absolutely necessary to have a negotiated peace process" between Israel and the Palestinians.

Speaking later at a Paris conference on the future of capitalism, Blair described frustrations during the last 18 months in his role as Mideast envoy.

"You know what's most frustrating? Not that it can't be solved - but that it so clearly could be," he said of the regional tension. "Is it really beyond our wit to grip this issue?"

Blair said he plans to return to the region after the Paris capitalism conference, which he attended along with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, among others.

Israel has said its military offensive in Gaza, which began on December 27, is aimed at stopping Hamas rocket fire. Nearly 700 Palestinians have died in the offensive.

Mideast envoys and delegates to the UN Security Council have been looking for ways of ending the crisis, notably around a French-Egyptian plan that calls for better border controls between Gaza and Egypt to crack down on the smuggling of weapons to Hamas militants.

- AP