Arafat, Peres Begin Talks in GazaPalestinian leader Yasser Arafat and former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres held a meeting late Saturday night in Gaza City, the highest-level talks between the sides in months.Neither side made any comment on the three-hour meeting in Arafat's guesthouse that was also attended by senior officials from both sides. Nabil Abu Rudeina, Arafat's aide, only said that the two sides have agreed to continue the talks. The meeting, which had been scheduled for Friday, was postponed after Arafat insisted on being briefed about the high-level Palestinian-Israeli talks Thursday night. Peres had said before that meeting that the aim of Saturday's talks was to quell violence in "this transition period" and to try to find a way to hold on to progress made so far toward peace. The Palestinian-Israeli clashes that erupted on September 28 have killed over 370 people, mostly Palestinians, and injured thousands of others. The clashes also further damaged mutual trust between the sides and contributed to Israeli early prime ministerial elections on February 6. Meanwhile, U.S. President Bill Clinton, who desired to crown his eight-year efforts in the Mideast peace process with a final Palestinian-Israeli peace deal, proposed a compromise plan last month, hoping to press for a framework agreement by January 20 when he leaves office. The peace plan reportedly calls on Israel to return sovereignty over the Arab neighborhoods and the Al Aqsa mosque compound in East Jerusalem to Palestinians in return for Palestinian giving up of the right of return for the some 3.7 million Palestinian refugees. Israel has accepted the proposals in principle while the Palestinians expressed deep reservations over them and did not give formal response. Palestinians and Israel resumed high-level talks last Thursday that were preceded by security meetings brokered by the U.S. and Egypt and Israeli easing of closure on the Palestinian territories. Palestine's negotiating team includes Speaker of Palestine Council Ahmed Qurei and chief negotiator Saeb Erakat, Arafat's aide Nabil Abu Rudeina, Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo and Mohammed Dahlan, chief of the preventative security forces for the Gaza Strip. Peres was joined by Foreign Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami, Tourism Minister Amnon Lipkin-Shahak and Gilad Sher, chief of staff in the office of caretaker Prime Minister Ehud Barak. |
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