Egypt said on Saturday Israeli actions in the Palestinian territories would not help Jan 9. Palestinian presidential elections succeed and Israel must live up to promises to facilitate the poll. Israel killed three Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Friday and nine on Thursday in raids the Israeli army said were to stop mortar and rocket attacks on Israeli settlements. Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit called for an immediate halt to an Israeli escalation. He said in a statement the policy did "not help in participating in the success of the Palestinian presidential elections".