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Egypt Supports Palestinian Rejection of Compromise on Jerusalem
Egypt on Sunday expressed support for the Palestinians against compromises on issues such as the status of Jerusalem and the fate of Palestinian refugees at the upcoming three-way summit.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat met on Sunday to discuss ways of reaching a fair and comprehensive solution to all the final-status issues, especially Jerusalem, Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa said.
He told reporters after the talks held at Borg El Arab airport to the west of the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria that the holy city of Jerusalem is the main issue that must not be neglected, delayed or frozen.
Arafat is consulting with Arab leaders in the run-up to the Camp David summit in the U.S. with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and U.S. President Bill Cliton.
Moussa added that the summit has been overshadowed by Barak's government, which has imposed limits on the negotiations, like rejecting Palestinians' demand for East Jerusalem to be the capital of their future state.
The Israelis have also opposed a return to the borders before the 1967 war.
The summit at the presidential Camp David retreat in Maryland is aimed at pushing the Palestinians and Israel to reach a final peace agreement by mid-September on settlement of the thorniest issues at the heart of the half-century Arab-Israeli conflict.
Senior officials close to Arafat, including Planning and International Cooperation Minister Nabil Shaath, have ruled out any compromises on Jerusalem and other issues.
Shaath said the Palestinians will insist that Israel withdraw to the borders prior to the 1967 war, and that Jerusalem should return as the capital of the Palestinians.
It was at the Camp David in 1978 that Egypt negotiated a peace deal with Israel, the first between an Arab country and the Jewish state. Egypt has since played an active role in helping bridge gaps between the Palestinians and Israelis.
Arafat arrived in Cairo Saturday night and the flew to the Borg El Arab air force base earlier Sunday for talks with Mubarak. He has left for a summit of the Organization of African Unity to be held on Monday in Togo.
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