US confident Gaza crossing deal will be back on track

A bus link was due to be up and running by Wednesday, but Israel froze all negotiations over the issue in protest against a deadly suicide bombing last week which killed five Israelis in the northern town of Netanya.

"We've been actively engaged with both sides on the implementation of the accord that they signed," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said of the deal rammed through by Rice during a Middle East trip last month.

"I expect that, although they did miss the deadline yesterday, that they would meet the deadline next week. That is their intention. That's what they've informed us, that they intend to meet that deadline next week," he said.

Rice held marathon talks in Jerusalem to nail down an agreement between Israelis and Palestiniasn to reopen the Rafah crossing on the Egyptian border and other transit points out of Gaza, which Israel evacuated in September.

McCormack did not say if Rice had put any pressure on Israel over the bus issue but said she was being kept apprised of the situation by her staff.

Israeli military radio reported that the Jewish state had finally agreed to resume the bus convoy between Gaza and the West Bank under heavy US pressure.

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