Israel shows interest in 48-hour Gaza truce

The proposal, offered by France on behalf of the European Union, came as Israel's air force appeared to be running short of bombing targets and losing the advantage of surprise it achieved early in the offensive that began Saturday.

Israeli aircraft attacked the coastal enclave throughout the day, pounding supply tunnels under Gaza's border with Egypt, an empty Hamas government complex, several security installations and the home of a senior Hamas commander. The bombing also killed more unarmed civilians, including two sisters, ages 4 and 11, who were walking near a rocket-launching site.

Hamas fired more than 40 rockets at Israeli communities near Gaza's border, striking deeper than ever into the Jewish state but causing only light casualties. One rocket landed 28 miles from Gaza in the desert city of Beersheba, a range that makes 700,000 Israelis, a tenth of the country's population, potential targets.

Israeli officials say the airstrikes have destroyed one-third of Hamas' estimated arsenal of 3,000 rockets and half of its underground launch silos -- "an overwhelming blow, albeit far from critical," said Yair Naveh, a former commander of Israeli forces in the West Bank.

He said the offensive, aimed at breaking Hamas' capacity and will to continue the rocket attacks, was nearing a decisive point: Israeli leaders must either escalate the fight with a ground invasion of Gaza or arrange a cease-fire.

Israeli officials said they were weighing both courses of action. But the desire for a truce appeared to dominate a series of high-level meetings today in Jerusalem, prodded by France's initiative and by an indirect show of interest from Hamas.

The idea of a truce was floated Sunday by Khaled Meshaal, Hamas' top political leader, based in Syria, in a telephone call to Senegalese President Abdoullaye Wade, who heads the Organization of the Islamic Conference.

Senegal's Foreign Ministry announced that Hamas was interested in a cease-fire if it included a lifting of Israel's blockade of Gaza, which has severely restricted the flow of goods across the border.