Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas will declare a formal ceasefire at a summit in Egypt on Tuesday, Israeli and Palestinian officials said Monday.

Israeli and Palestinian negotiators finalized a truce agreement during last-minute preparations on Monday.

"The most important thing at the summit will be a mutual declaration of cessation of violence against each other," said chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, quoted by leading Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz on its website.

An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the ceasefire agreement, saying the deal would also include an end to Palestinian incitement against Israel. Sharon, Abbas, Jordan's King Abdullah II and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will meet at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on Tuesday.

(Xinhua News Agency February 8, 2005)