Violence is casting a shadow on talks

Despite tension, Prime Minister Abbas said a deal with Hamas is near.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) -- Israeli commandos carried out the first arrest raid in the Gaza Strip on Saturday 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 Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh were meeting late Saturday. Ahead of the meeting, participants said the two were near agreement, though it was unclear whether they could wrap up a deal.
"I think we are very, very close to achieving a big compromise and a final agreement, but I think we need a little time and a little patience," said Ghazi Hamad, spokesman for the Hamas-led government.
The two sides 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.
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.
A controversial party
Israel and Western donors, which provide most of the funds for the Palestinian budget, have boycotted the Hamas government until the group renounces violence and recognizes Israel.
Hamas, which is sworn to Israel's destruction, has so far refused to endorse the deal with Abbas. But with the economic situation in the Palestinian areas worsening, pressure has mounted on the militants to strike a deal.
Hamad, the government spokesman, said Hamas has agreed to compromise on "very important issues."
Contentious points in the prisoners' document include tacitly accepting Israel by endorsing a Palestinian state alongside it, ending Palestinian attacks inside Israel, and forming a national unity government.
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