Wednesday, March 9 2005 12:17 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Jerusalem: All Palestinian armed groups are ready to observe a ceasefire in both Israel and the occupied territories, General Jibril Rajoub, National Security Advisor (NSA) of the Palestinian Authority (PA) said today (Mar 9, 2005).

"There is a consensus among the Palestinians to stop attacks behind the 'green line' (which has separated Israel and the Occupied territories since 1967). There is an agreement on this point," he told Israeli public radio.

"Today there is also a decision under which all the groups would observe a cooling off in the occupied territories in order to give time to the Palestinian Authority to conclude an agreement with Israel," he said, describing the development as a "historic change".