Israel pledged today to withdraw from most West Bank cities by the end of the week but said it would continue to besiege Mr Yasser Arafat's compound and Bethlehem's Nativity church.
Israeli Defense Minister Mr Binyamin Ben-Eliezer said troops would withdraw from the West Bank cities of Nablus, Jenin and parts of Ramallah by Sunday but would remain around Mr Arafat's Ramallah compound and the Church of the Nativity until a standoff with militants was resolved.
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"It should be clear that we will not be able to leave the area of Bethlehem and the Mukata [Arafat's Ramallah compound] where there are terrorists being hidden until the terrorists are handed over to us," Mr Ben-Eliezer told Israel Radio.
Israeli Foreign Minister Mr Shimon Peres said "creative solutions" would be needed to end the stand-offs in Bethlehem and Ramallah and lead to a withdrawal from all Palestinian-ruled West Bank cities.
In Shannon airport, a senior State Department official said Mr Powell could return to the Middle East to follow up on his mission in as little as two or three weeks.
Mr Powell told reporters yesterday that the word ceasefire was not even relevant until Israel ended an offensive begun on March 29th after a string of suicide bombings that killed scores of people in Israel.
He also voiced concern over Mr Arafat's role in curbing militant factions, saying he had told Mr Arafat his Palestinian Authority must resolve to stifle "terrorism" and needed to make a "strategic choice" for peace.
The Palestinian Authority published a statement after Mr Powell's departure accusing Israel of "avoiding all chances to achieve peace" and of sabotaging Mr Powell's initiative. "Israel is conducting theatrics to deceive international public opinion," it said.