Jerusalem: The Palestinian Authority (PA) on September 16 made a fresh ceasefire offer which was quickly rejected by Israel saying it will not be lured into the "honey-trap" and demanded that PA crackdown on militant groups.

Yasser Arafat's newly appointed national security advisor Jibril Rajoub said Palestinian leadership was ready to declare an immediate, general ceasefire to end all acts of Palestinian violence, provided that Israel agreed to halt military attacks and remove its blockades.

"The Palestinian leadership is ready to proclaim and respect a general ceasefire, but it must be mutual," he said.

Israeli officials immediately dismissed the proposal terming it as "honey trap".

"Cease-fire had failed to end the fighting in the past, and that the government stood by a decision not to agree to a further truce," Ha'aretz quoted Israeli officials as saying.

Citing a government statement last week that truce was no substitute for dismantling terrorist organisation, Israeli official reportedly said that Israel's security Cabinet had decided the country will not be part of any such ceasefires designed to protect Arafat from expulsion.

Israel Radio quoted unnamed government officials as saying the truce offer was an attempt to bring Arafat back to centre-stage and "rescue" him from the threat of expulsion.

According to the new proposal, a ceasefire encompassing all Arab factions in Judea, Samaria and Gaza and halting all Israeli armed operations would be declared as soon as possible.

Immediately after the start of the ceasefire, Rajoub proposed Israel and the PA would begin final status negotiations, reported Israel National News.

"Ceasefire would not be temporary, as was the hudna, or truce declared by Palestinian militant groups earlier this year, but would be a comprehensive, joint Israeli-Palestinian move to pave the wave for peace talks toward a permanent agreement between the sides," Rajoub told Israel Radio.

"We are ready to sit and we are ready to declare a general cease fire, but it must be something mutual. Without mutuality, nothing will be achieved," he said.

Clarifying the concept of mutuality, Rajoub said that the ceasefire proposal would require the Israelis to "end their attacks, and lift the blockades and closures over the Palestinian population, which has been suffering for the last three years".

The proposal would also require Israel to cease construction in settlements and stop building the West Bank security fence, Israel Radio said.

The offer comes a day after Palestinian premier-designate Ahmed Qureia handed Yasser Arafat the authority to appoint a new Cabinet, defying the Israeli demand to "remove" him.

Palestinian militant groups declared the end of ceasefire in August after Israel killed a Hamas political leader Shanab in a targeted attack in response to an August 19 Hamas bus bombing that killed 22 people.

PTI