CAIRO (AFP)--Egypt has summoned Israel's ambassador in Cairo to demand his country complies with a UN Security Council resolution on a ceasefire in Gaza, its foreign ministry said Sunday.
Ambassador Shlomo Cohen was told Israel "must respond to calls for allowing humanitarian corridors (into Gaza)," ministry spokesman Hossam Zaki said in a statement.
The envoy was also asked about Israeli reports that the Jewish state wished to expand its Gaza offensive in order to pressure Cairo into doing more about Egypt-Gaza smuggling tunnels.
Cohen responded by saying "there is no basis for such talk and Israeli... military actions are related only to the circumstances in Gaza," according to the statement.
The Israeli army sent reserve forces into Gaza on Sunday, signaling a possible expansion of the ground offensive it launched on January 3 after a week of air strikes.
Israel says it is trying to deter the Islamist Hamas movement, which controls Gaza, from firing rockets into Israel. At least 885 Palestinians and 13 Israelis have been killed since the conflict began.
On Saturday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit blamed Israel for stalling the ceasefire, saying it was doing so with the "false" hope of "achieving political objectives through military means."
Israel rejected the Security Council resolution and Hamas said it would not accept a ceasefire that failed to lift the blockade of Gaza.
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Publié le 11 janvier 2009 Copyright © 2009 Dowjones