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Arafat, Jordan's FM Meet on Mideast Crisis
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat met here Tuesday with Jordan's Foreign Minister Abdel Ilah al- Khatib on the latest violence in the Palestinian territories.
Arafat said after the meeting that the two sides agreed on the need to restore calm in the territories and resume the Palestinian- Israel peace talks. "Among the fundamental points we discussed was the importance of returning the situation to the way it was," he said.
The remarks was in contrast to the earlier statements by Arafat and other Palestinian officials that the intifada (uprising) in the territories would continue until the Palestinians can establish an independent state in the West Bank and Gaza Stripe with East Jerusalem as its capital.
"The situation must be restored to what it was before to increase the appropriate atmosphere to resume negotiations and the peace process, which is a way to achieve Palestinian national rights," said al-Khatib, who delivered to Arafat a letter from Jordanian King Abdullah II.
Al-Khatib said Jordan supports the Palestinian people and urges Israel to preserve the peace process.
Arafat is expected to meet European Union (EU) peace envoy Mieguel Muratinos Tuesday evening, after which he will preside over a meeting of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA).
Seven Palestinians have been killed in clashes with Israeli security forces in the West Bank and Gaza Strip on Tuesday, while dozens of others were injured.
More than 140 people, the vast majority Palestinians, have been killed and over 5,000 injured in the clashes that rage through the territories for over a month.
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