GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - A local group of Palestinian militants announced Saturday it is ready to stop violence, a sign that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas appears to be making some progress in persuading armed factions to halt attacks on Israel.

The announcement by gunmen from the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a group with ties to Abbas' ruling Fatah movement, came a day after some 3,000 Palestinian policemen were deployed in the northern Gaza Strip to halt rocket fire on Israeli communities.

A top Israeli security official on Saturday praised the Palestinian effort to rein in militants. Compared to lackluster performance in the past, "now it seems they (Palestinian security forces) are taking positive action," said Brig. Gen. Giora Eiland, head of Israel's National Security Council.

Eiland told Israel Radio that the situation remains fragile and that in the long run Abbas will have to dismantle armed groups and raid weapons workshops

Abbas has said he wants to avoid force and is instead trying to reach agreement with the militants.

In the past few days, he has been meeting with militant leaders in Gaza, and participants have reported progress toward a truce. Egypt is expected to host Abbas and Palestinian militant leaders in coming days in Cairo to finalize an agreement, a top Palestinian official said on condition of anonymity.

The meeting is to be convened after the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which ends Sunday.

The armed groups - mainly Hamas, Al Aqsa and Islamic Jihad - have said they want Israel to promise that it is halting military operations, including arrest raids and targeted killings of wanted Palestinians. Israel has refused to give such a guarantee in the past, and it remains unclear if it will do so now.