Cease-fire troubled as Mitchell presses on

JERUSALEM, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- The cease-fire between Palestinian and Israeli forces was rocked by reported attacks as U.S. special envoy George Mitchell pressed his Middle East mission.

News of Palestinians firing a rocket and Israel responding with an airstrike came a day after Mitchell called on both sides to consolidate the fragile truce, The New York Times reported Thursday.

Mitchell said he discussed with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert "the critical importance" of cementing the cease-fire that ended Israel's three-week battle with Hamas in Gaza.

Mitchell planned to meet Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and other leaders Thursday, but does not plan to meet with representatives from Hamas, classified as a terrorist organization by United States, Israel and the European Union.

An Israeli military spokesman said a missile was fired from Gaza into Israel early Thursday. Several hours later, news reports said a police officer and six schoolchildren were injured in an Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza.

After meeting with Olmert, Mitchell told reporters an expanded cease-fire should include a cessation of hostilities, an end to weapons smuggling into Gaza and reopening of border crossings based on 2005 agreements.

An aide to Olmert said the prime minister told Mitchell the crossings would "not be permanently opened" until there is a resolution in the case of Israeli Cpl. Gilad Shalit, captured in a cross-border raid in 2006 and taken into Gaza. Hamas is demanding Israel release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including those accused of terrorist acts, in exchange for Shalit's release.