EU seeks new Gaza truce

Britain, France and Germany have launched a fresh bid at the UN to end six weeks of violence in Gaza, as Israeli warplanes pounded the enclosed enclave for the 46th day pushing the death toll to 2,091.

On Thursday, airstrikes killed three top Hamas commanders, inflicting a heavy blow on the movement's armed wing, triggering a furious response from the de-facto ruling party in Gaza.

In retaliation, Hamas gunmen yesterday executed 18 Palestinians accused of collaborating with Israel in the heart of Gaza City.

The Palestinian emergency services say another 75 people have died in Gaza since hostilities resumed on Tuesday following a nine-day truce. In Israel, two civilians have been wounded by direct rocket attacks.

The European initiative on Thursday came as fighting flared on the ground and an Egyptian-led effort to broker peace talks teetered on the verge of collapse.

In a document obtained by AFP, the three countries urged an immediate and sustainable ceasefire that would put an end to the firing of rockets and military operations in the Gaza Strip.

It calls for a lifting of the Israeli blockade and a monitoring mechanism to report on ceasefire violations and verify the flow of goods into the Gaza Strip.

Diplomats said the text was aimed at advancing efforts to reach agreement within the 15-member UN Security Council on a resolution after Jordan's draft text met with resistance, notably from the United States.

The so-called "elements" document lays out the parameters for a ceasefire deal that would address Israel's security concerns and meet Palestinian demands.

It asks UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to immediately come up with proposals to "implement the relevant provisions" in a move that could jump-start peace negotiations.

UN diplomats said they hoped the initiative would shore up the Egyptian-led peace track and lead to a lasting ceasefire that would avoid a relapse into war.

At least 2,091 Palestinians have been killed since July 8, of whom the United Nations has identified 70 percent as civilians, and 67 people have died on the Israeli side, all but three of them soldiers.

The European-drafted document calls for the return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza, which has been under Hamas control for the past seven years.

It provides for the lifting of economic and humanitarian restrictions on the Gaza Strip to allow for a massive reconstruction effort, and for the re-opening of border crossings.

An international monitoring and verification mission would be established with a mandate to report on ceasefire violations and check the flow of goods into Gaza -- a key point missing from the Jordanian draft resolution.

Ban has pledged international help to rebuild Gaza but warned that this would be "for the last time" after three wars in six years.

18 Israeli 'collaborators' executed

In broad daylight outside Gaza's largest mosque, a day after Israel killed three of the movement's top militants, Hamas gunmen grabbed six men from among hundreds of worshippers spilling out onto the street, witnesses told AFP.

They were pushed to the ground. One of the masked men shouted: "This is the final moment of the Zionist enemy collaborators," then the gunmen sprayed them with bullets.

Earlier, another witness saw 11 people shot dead in a square near the remains of Gaza police headquarters, bombed by Israeli warplanes. An 18th person was shot in front of bystanders in a separate incident nearby.

The Israeli military yesterday said it struck around 30 targets in Gaza since midnight as 45 rocket and mortar shells hit Israel during the same period. Another seven rockets were shot down, a spokeswoman said.

Two Palestinian men aged 22 and 24 were killed in a strike on Nusseirat refugee camp early yesterday, emergency services said.

Two more were killed in an air raid near neighbouring Deir al-Balah.