GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Israeli commandos on Saturday carried out the first arrest raid in the Gaza Strip since Israel's withdrawal from the coastal area last year, seizing two Hamas militants in a swift overnight operation.
The raid, completed in just one hour under the cover of darkness, came as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was in Gaza trying to work out final details on a power-sharing agreement with the Hamas-led government.
Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas met for about two hours late Saturday but failed to reach a deal. Participants said the talks were positive, and more meetings were scheduled for today.
"The dialogue is moving in the right direction," said Nabil Abu Rdeneh, a top aide to Abbas. He said both sides need to "convince the world that we have a government they can deal with."
The two factions have been locked in a power struggle since Hamas defeated Abbas' Fatah party in January legislative elections. Abbas, a moderate, was elected separately last year.
Abbas has been pressing the Islamic militants of Hamas to accept a proposal drafted by senior prisoners held by Israel that calls for the implicit recognition of the Jewish state.
If Hamas doesn't accept the document, Abbas has said he will move ahead with a July 26 referendum on the proposal.
Opinion polls indicate Palestinian voters back Abbas.
Abbas believes a united political front would end weeks of bloody Palestinian infighting, help lift international financial sanctions against Hamas and allow him to restart peace talks with Israel.
In Saturday's raid, a small force of Israeli commandos swept into southern Gaza, seized two brothers affiliated with Hamas and quickly withdrew, the army said.
It was the third time ground forces had entered Gaza since Israel completed its unilateral withdrawal last September, but the first arrests.
