Jerusalem ? Israel agreed Sunday to release desperately needed funds to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a day before the moderate leader planned to meet the heads of Egypt, Israel and Jordan in a summit meant to bolster him in his struggle with Hamas.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert sought to play down expectations for the meeting in Egypt with Abbas, President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and Jordan’s King Abdullah II. An Olmert aide said it was premature to begin talks on a final Israeli-Palestinian peace deal, despite urging from Fatah and other Arab countries to take immediate advantage of the Hamas militants’ expulsion from the coalition government.

Israeli Cabinet members agreed in principle to start giving him $550 million in frozen Palestinian tax money. The freeze left previous Palestinian governments unable to pay full salaries to government employees, who support one-third of the Palestinian people.

Deposed Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, speaking in Gaza, called hopes for the summit “illusions” and a “mirage.” He said, “the Americans won’t give anything. Israel won’t give us anything. Our land, our nation will not come back to us except with steadfastness and resistance,” a code word for attacks against Israel.

The Israeli military, meanwhile, said that one of its aircraft had targeted a car carrying an Islamic Jihad rocket squad on its way to an attack in Gaza City in the first such attack since Hamas overran the Gaza Strip this month. One person was killed and two wounded, hospital officials said.

Islamic Jihad said the vehicle was carrying its members on a “holy mission,” code for an attack on Israel.

The Hamas takeover of Gaza has complicated the cases of an Israeli soldier and a British reporter being held captive by militants. Early today, a new video was posted on a Web site used by militants that showed kidnapped journalist Alan Johnston wearing an apparent explosives belt of the type suicide bombers use and warning it will be detonated if an attempt is made to free him by force.

In the video, a jittery Johnston asks Hamas and the British government “not to resort to the tactics of force in an effort to end this.” A logo and other features credited the video to the Army of Islam, a shadowy group that claims to have snatched the British Broadcasting Corp. correspondent from a Gaza street on March 12.

On Sunday, hundreds gathered outside Israel’s parliament to mark the one-year anniversary of soldier Gilad Shalit’s capture. Noam Shalit, the soldier’s father, criticized the government for failing to win his son’s release.