Rice urges Egypt to produce truce

American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged Egyptian officials on Sunday to hold talks with Hamas and to pressure them towards a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Rice had said during a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Foreign Ministers meeting in Brussels that Egypt is a US ally and a partner in the Israeli-Palestinian 'peace' process.

Egypt began talks on Thursday with leaders of Hamas and Islamic Jihad aimed at negotiating a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.