Israel said it would suspend bombing Gaza for three hours every day beginning on Wednesday as diplomacy to end the Jewish state's war on Hamas gained momentum amid a mounting civilian death toll.

"It was decided to suspend bombings between 1 and 4 o'clock (1100 GMT and 1400 GMT) every day starting today," an army spokeswoman told AFP, adding that the military would respond if fired on and if rockets were launched from the enclave.

Another official at the defence ministry told AFP that "the army will stop its operations in the area of Gaza City."

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The announcement came hours after Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Israel would open a humanitarian corridor into Gaza -- a key point of an Egyptian plan to end the 12-day-old campaign that has killed at least 680 Palestinians.

"In order to prevent a humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert decided to adopt a proposal by the security establishment to open a humanitarian corridor into the Gaza Strip to assist the population," said a statement from his office.

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