U.S. in talks to help stop arms smuggling into Gaza

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States could help prevent the smuggling of arms into the Gaza Strip under an accord that is being discussed by U.S. and Israeli officials, a diplomat familiar with the discussions said on Thursday.

"They are already working on this document," said the diplomat, who spoke on condition that he not be named because of the sensitivity of the talks. He said that Israel wanted such an agreement as a condition of a ceasefire in Gaza.

Israel launched a military offensive on the coastal strip ruled by the Hamas Islamist group on December 27 with the stated aim of halting Palestinian rocket attacks on southern Israel.

The rockets and other weapons are believed to enter Gaza through tunnels from Egypt, many of which have been destroyed by Israel during its military operation, the diplomat said.

He added that the idea under discussion would be for the United States to provide "technical support" to ensure that the Hamas Islamist group that rules Gaza could not smuggle arms in through tunnels from Egypt.

"The technical support is a real key element," the source added. "The Egyptians have agreed to allow U.S. technical staff to go there and to do all the necessary work to ensure that Hamas cannot get weapons in through those tunnels."

He said it was possible that Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni could fly to the United States to finalize the document, but did not know if she would do so.

The Palestinian death toll from the Israeli air-and-ground offensive has risen to at least 1,076 and there were more than 5,000 wounded, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. A Palestinian rights group said at least 670 of the dead were civilians.

Thirteen Israelis have been killed -- 10 soldiers and three civilians hit by Hamas rocket fire -- since Israel launched the offensive.

(Reporting by Arshad Mohammed, editing by Jackie Frank)