Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini will report to parliament on the crisis in Gaza on Friday afternoon, sources at the Chamber of Deputies said.
Frattini will appear before the lower house foreign affairs committee in response to a request from its chairman, Stefano Stefani.
Speaking on Tuesday, Frattini said that Italy supported the European Union's efforts and those of French President Nicolas Sarkozy to broker a ceasefire in Gaza, where an Israeli military offensive is under way against the ruling Hamas movement.
Frattini issued a statement saying Italy was very concerned over the consequences the week-long offensive was having on Palestinian civilians in Gaza and was ready to offer an ''urgent Italian aid package'' for the local population.
The foreign minister voiced his appreciation for the assurances from Israel that emergency aid was reaching Gaza to help ease the humanitarian situation there.
Frattini also announced that his ministry was ready to coordinate any aid from regional and local Italian governments and agencies to ensure it reached the people in need.
Frattini on Monday blamed Hamas for the current crisis in Gaza and said the movement ''not only violated a truce, it also violated the principle of land for peace''.
The minister added that while Israel ''has the right to defend itself'' from missile attacks on its border towns, ''it also has the duty to avoid civilian casualties''.
According to Frattini, ''the Palestinian people are the real victims of Hamas, which holds them hostage in Gaza''.
Italy this year holds the rotating presidency of the Group of Eight (G8) most industrialised countries and has made the situation in the Middle East Mideast one of its priorities.
