Israel plans to renew contacts with the Palestinian National Authority in a bid to coordinate the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank, Army Radio reported Thursday.

Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz made the decision Thursday during a security meeting devoted to assessing the current situation in the Israeli-Palestinian region, said the report.

The contacts were temporarily cut off after a deadly suicide bomb attack in the Israeli coastal city of Netanya killed five people last week.

According to the radio, Mofaz accused the Palestinian government of not doing enough to combat the terror tactics of the Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

Israel's decision came upon arrival of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is scheduled to visit the region in response to a recent escalation of violence.

Rice's visit is designed to give backing to the disengagement process, seen in Washington as a key component of US foreign policy in the Middle East.

She will also discuss the Israeli request for another 2.1 billion US dollars in aid.

Source: Xinhua