Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said on Thursday conditions have been ripe for a "historic breakthrough" on the Middle East peace after measures taken by Chairman of the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to bring calm.

"I believe the conditions have been created to permit us and the Palestinians to reach an historic breakthrough, a breakthrough that will lead us to security and peace," Sharon told a business forum in Jerusalem.

Sharon said that Israel could implement the roadmap if the Palestinians stopped attacks, Israeli newspaper Jerusalem Post reported.

"If the Palestinians act forcefully to disband terror groups and put an end to violence and incitement, we could move forward in our contacts to implement the roadmap," Sharon told a convention of the Contractors' Association in Tel Aviv.

His remarks came hours after the Palestinian National Authority(PNA) began deploying forces in the southern Gaza Strip, as previously agreed upon with Israel.

Hopes for progress have been raised by a dip in violence since Abbas was elected on Jan. 9 to succeed Yasser Arafat and began pursuing a truce deal with militant groups.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is to leave next week on a tour of European nations as well as Israel and the West Bank, officials in Washington said.

ABBAS URGES ISRAEL TO ACT

Abbas called for a swift response from Israel to demands for a mutual cease-fire with militants, as Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Thursday spoke of a possible breakthrough.

Abbas held talks with US Assistant Secretary of State William Burns on Thursday after winning praise from President George W. Bush and Sharon for his efforts to end the armed uprising.

"We are interested in a mutual ceasefire. The Israelis have also told me that they are interested but they need to respond very quickly," Abbas told reporters. "There is no reason why they should delay any decision."

The successor to the late Yasser Arafat has already secured an agreement from militant groups such as Hamas and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades for a "cooling down" period.

There has been a sharp reduction in attacks by militants over the past week from their Gaza stronghold where thousands of Palestinian security forces have been deployed with orders to prevent the firing of rockets.

However Abbas, speaking after talks with Burns, said the situation "cannot last for long".

The factions have said that they are willing to make a formal ceasefire declaration if Israel ends its military operations in the occupied territories and starts to release the 8,000 Palestinians being held in Israeli prisons.

A senior Palestinian official said on Thursday that Israel has agreed to withdraw from four Palestinian cities in the West Bank and release 900 Palestinian prisoners.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that during a meeting held in Jerusalem on Wednesday, Israel accepted most of Palestinian demands, including operating Gaza Airport and constructing a sea port in Gaza.

In another confidence-building move, Palestinian prime minister Ahmed Qorei signed a decree banning anyone but members of the security services from carrying weapons.

Meanwhile in Gaza, voters went to the polls Thursday in 10 municipalities in the first ever local elections in the territory, which has been occupied by Israel since 1967 along with the West Bank.

Also on Thursday, Israeli Vice Prime Minister Shimon Peres saidhe expected Prime Minister Sharon to renew talks with Abbas in "days, not weeks," as reported by Israeli newspaper Haaretz.

Source: Xinhua