(Updates with comment by Clinton) CRAWFORD, Texas, March 2 (Reuters) - The United States called on Sunday for an end to clashes between Israel and the Palestinians as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice confirmed plans to visit the region this week. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas suspended peace negotiations with Israel in reaction to an Israeli offensive in Gaza that has killed more than 100 Palestinians, many of them civilians, others fighters. Israel launched the offensive in response to rocket attacks on southern Israel. "The violence needs to stop and the talks need to resume," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said. Rice has no plans to call off a meeting this week with Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, a State Department spokesman said. "Her plans remain intact," department spokesman Rob McInturff said. "We're encouraging Israel to exercise caution to avoid the loss of innocent life." The issue also came up in the U.S. presidential campaign with Democrats Barack Obama Hillary Clinton both saying Israel had the right to defend itself and blaming the Islamic fundamentalists of Hamas for the violence. Obama, an Illinois senator, called on Israel to try to minimize civilian casualties while New York Sen. Clinton regretted the decision by Abbas to suspend talks and said the Bush administration should be doing more to bring international pressure on Hamas to stop its rocket attacks on Israel. "The violence in Gaza is the result of Hamas' decision to launch rocket attacks on Israeli civilians and Israel has a right to defend itself," he said. "I remain very concerned about the fate of civilians and urge Israel to do all it can to avoid civilian deaths and to keep its focus on Hamas, which bears responsibility for these events." Clinton's statement was similar. "I deplore and condemn the Hamas rocket attacks on southern Israel, including the city of Ashkelon. Israel has the right to defend its citizens," she said. "I regret the civilian loss of life and casualties on both sides that this provocative action has caused." "The Bush Administration should have been taking a more active role in bringing international pressure on Hamas to stop its attacks," Clinton said. Israel said it was acting in self-defense in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip to curb cross-border rocket attacks by militants and threatened to intensify its ground and air campaign despite allegations it was using excessive force. Washington has said it hoped Israeli-Palestinian talks can lead to a statehood deal before President George W. Bush leaves office in January. (Editing by Alan Elsner) (Reporting by David Alexander in Crawford and Chris Baltimore in Washington)
Israeli left wing activists protest against the Israeli military operation in Gaza strip in Tel Aviv March 2, 2008. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas suspended peace negotiations with Israel on Sunday, demanding ...
