Obama, Mideast Leaders Kick Off Talks With Calls For Peace

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip -- The top Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip rejected compromise with Israel in a fiery speech Wednesday, a day after gunmen killed four Israelis in a strong reminder that the Islamic militant group cannot be ignored in any Mideast deal.

President Barack Obama denounced the West Bank ambush as he launched a two-day summit marking the first Israeli-Palestinian negotiations in nearly two years.

"The message should go out to Hamas and everyone else who is taking credit for these heinous crimes that this is not going to stop us," he said after greeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.