Palestinian militants fired a Qassam rocket yesterday from the Gaza Strip to Sderot. The rocket landed in an open area near the city, causing no injuries or damage. This is the second rocket fired in the last 24 hours, despite the cease-fire declared on Sunday morning. Israeli security sources said yesterday that the Gaza Strip has been relatively quiet and the Palestinian Authority is making visible efforts to meet the agreement.

Defense Minister Amir Peretz said yesterday that defensive activities would only be carried out in the West Bank and the cease-fire with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip would be given a chance.

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Meanwhile, Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Dan Halutz leveled veiled criticism of the political echelon's decision-making process yesterday, saying that the army was only partly involved in the decision to declare the cease-fire.

Speaking on a visit to Gush Etzion yesterday, Peretz said, "The basic understandings are for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip. We are working in Judea and Samaria to prevent terror attacks. All activity is legitimate and defensive and must take place. When we reach any understandings on stopping terrorist activity here, we will consider the way the IDF will operate."

With regard to the situation in the Gaza Strip, Peretz said, "We will give the cease-fire a chance. Clearly there are extremist factions interested in dragging the area once again into escalation. If the situation continues, we will decide how to respond and we will respond harshly."

In the West Bank, the IDF continued its usual activities, arresting 14 wanted men yesterday. A number of stones and Molotov cocktails were thrown yesterday at Israeli vehicles. South of Nablus, one Israeli woman was slightly injured by a stone thrown at her.

Meanwhile an indictment was issued yesterday in the Judea and Samaria Military Court against Fares Kawasma, a 30-year-old Hamas militant from Hebron, suspected of planning to kidnap and murder an Israeli and negotiate an exchange of the body for prisoners.

Speaking at a meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Halutz revealed the partial involvement of the IDF in the cease-fire decision in answer to a question posed by MK Dan Naveh. Naveh said he believed "the situation was the result of the conflict between the prime minister and the defense minister who does not believe the chief of staff."

Halutz also said, "The cease-fire pertains only to high-trajectory fire from Gaza, but does not provide a solution to the problem of the strengthening of the terror organizations and arms smuggling, and to the release of Gilad Shalit."

Halutz said any attempt by the Palestinians to forge a linkage between Gaza and the West Bank should be thwarted so as not to curtail Israel's freedom to operate in the West Bank.

Despite reports that 13,000 Palestinian police had been deployed against rocket launchers, Halutz said only a limited deployment on the margins of the area had been seen.

MK Yuval Steinitz (Likud) said it seemed that in exchange for temporary quiet in Sderot, Israel was giving a green light to continued smuggling and the threat of rockets.

MK Ran Cohen (Meretz) demanded that Halutz move the artillery from the border. Minister of Strategic Threats Avigdor Lieberman said yesterday on the Knesset TV channel that he did not believe the Palestinians would keep their obligations to the cease-fire.