U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wrapped up her trip to the Middle East Wednesday with a commitment from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to resume peace negotiations with Israel.

"I've had very strong affirmation of not just the desire to get this agreement, but the necessity to get this agreement, " Rice told reporters in Jerusalem. "And I am pleased that the parties have said that they are going to resume negotiations. They intend to do that and the contacts will begin between them to bring that about."

Palestinian children cry at the funeral in Gaza City on Wednesday of one-month-old Ameera Abu Asser, who was killed overnight during fighting between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants.
(Khalil Hamra/Associated Press)

Abbas, who broke off talks during the Israeli military's recent incursion into the Gaza Strip, earlier indicated talks would only resume if Israel reached a truce with Hamas militants in Gaza. But he later backed off that demand.

"The peace process is a strategic choice and we have the intention of resuming the peace process," Abbas said in a statement.

Although not making it a condition, Abbas insisted he wanted the talks to continue after a ceasefire in Gaza is negotiated between Israel and Hamas. He did not say when talks would restart.

Rice said Hamas cannot be allowed to dictate the pace of negotiations. She added that Israel continued talks after a Palestinian suicide bombing in southern Israel last month and an Israeli man was killed in a Hamas rocket attack last week.

The peace talks were put on hold by Abbas following Israel's offensive into Gaza last week to stop Hamas from firing rockets into the southern part of the country. The campaign has left more than 120 Palestinians dead.

Rice sending envoy

Egypt is heavily involved in trying to negotiate a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, and Rice confirmed the U.S. is sending a special envoy to Cairo to assist.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert also left the door open to an unofficial truce with Hamas.

"If there is no rocket fire at Israel, there won't be Israeli attacks on Gaza," he told reporters.

Rice did not call for a truce and urged Hamas to halt its rocket fire. But she also urged Israel to do its best to protect Palestinian civilians caught in the crossfire.

"There are enemies of peace that will always try to hold hostage the Palestinian cause and the future of the Palestinian people for their own state," she said. "And Hamas, which in effect holds the people of Gaza hostage in their hands, is now trying to make the path to a Palestinian state hostage to them. We cannot permit that to happen."

On Tuesday night, about 25 Israeli armoured vehicles entered southern Gaza and clashed with militants.

A local Islamic Jihad leader was killed, and eight militants and three civilians were wounded. One-month-old Ameera Abu Asser was also killed in the crossfire.

Some Israeli officials are calling for a large-scale invasion of Gaza to stop the rocket attacks, which this week have ranged as far as the coastal city of Ashkelon, 18 kilometres north of Gaza.

With files from the Associated Press