Captive Israeli soldier's family contests Gaza truce

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - The parents of an Israeli soldier being held captive in the Gaza Strip asked Israel's high court on Saturday to delay opening border crossings with the territory until their son's release is guaranteed.

An Egyptian-mediated truce between Israel and the Hamas Islamist group in control of the Gaza Strip went into effect on Thursday. The agreement is meant to halt cross-border fighting as well as gradually and partially ease Israel's economic blockade of the enclave.

Sergeant Gilad Shalit, was captured on June 25, 2006 aged 19 by Palestinian gunmen who tunneled into Israel from Gaza.

The family petitioned the court to prevent the implementation of any agreement to open Gaza's border crossings or to ease the economic blockade until Shalit "is freed from his captors or a guarantee for his release is given".

Included in the petition was a handwritten letter from Shalit that the family received about two weeks ago.

The court is expected to discuss the case on Sunday.

Israel imposed a blockade on the Gaza Strip after Hamas seized the territory from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's more secular Fatah faction a year ago.

A Palestinian source with direct knowledge of the ceasefire negotiations said the Israeli-run Karni and Sufa crossing would step up operations three days after the truce takes effect, with the flow of goods set at 30 percent of the levels before Hamas took over Gaza.

Ten days after the truce begins, Israel would ease limitations at Karni and Sufa, the source added, although some restrictions on certain goods would remain in place.

(Writing by Ari Rabinovitch; edited by Richard Meares)