MIDDLE EAST: Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will meet next week, their first summit since Israel withdrew its soldiers and settlers from the Gaza Strip, Mr Sharon's office announced yesterday.
A statement posted on the office website quoted Mr Sharon as telling Jordan's King Abdullah by telephone that "he intends to meet the Palestinian Authority chairman next week in order to advance the various issues on the agenda".
In Amman, a Jordanian palace official said the summit would take place on Tuesday, at Abdullah's behest.
But both Palestinian and Israeli officials said the date and venue would be set when aides of Mr Sharon and Mr Abbas meet tomorrow.
Israel's pullbacks from Gaza and a corner of the West Bank, completed on September 12th, were the first removal of Jewish settlements from occupied land where Palestinians seek statehood and stirred international hopes of ending five years of fighting.
A summit expected earlier this month was deferred because of a lack of preparation and amid a surge in violence, with Israel answering militant rocket fire from Gaza with air strikes and arrest sweeps.
Mr Sharon and Mr Abbas held their first summit in February, soon after Mr Abbas was elected to succeed Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, and declared a ceasefire which paved the way for the Israeli withdrawals.
A second meeting, in Jerusalem in June, was overshadowed by bloodshed and recrimination over mutual failures to honour commitments under the US-led peace "road map".
But Mr Sharon and Mr Abbas cemented an agreement to co-ordinate the Gaza pullout.
The Palestinians say a final accord depends on Israel quitting all of the West Bank, where the vast majority of settlers live.
Mr Sharon says Israel will never cede West Bank settlement blocs, although he has hinted that dozens of smaller enclaves could be removed under a future peace agreement.
Pre-election power struggles on both sides militate against viable peacemaking anytime soon.
Mr Sharon is talking tough on settlement blocs to counter opposition from rightist hardliners in his party. Mr Abbas faces a strong challenge from Hamas, an Islamic military group sworn to Israel's destruction, in a January parliamentary poll. - (Reuters)
The Palestinian parliament yesterday decided to appoint a committee of politicians to investigate the death of long-time leader Yasser Arafat, alleging Israel involvement. "We believe he was killed" by the Israelis, deputy parliament speaker Hassan Kreisheh said. Israel has denied the allegation. - (AP)