Palestinian Official Rules out Summit Between Arafat, BarakThe Palestinians have so far not received any proposals or ideas from Israel on such a meeting, Palestinian Minister of Culture and Information Yasser Abed Rabou told the Egyptian television.The world community had tried to bring together Arafat and Barak before Israeli prime ministerial election on Tuesday. But Barak has decided against such a meeting after two Israelis were killed in the West Bank on Thursday. Israel's stance, especially on the issues of land and Jerusalem, has softened "a little" during the latest round of peace talks between the two sides in Egypt's Sinai resort of Taba, Rabou said. "This was a source of encouragement to the Palestinians," he said, adding that the Palestinian side was ready to work out an agreement. He said the Israeli side raised a proposal on dividing sovereignty over holy sites in East Jerusalem, but the proposal was turned down by the Palestinians. "The Palestinian National Authority's stance is that East Jerusalem, with all its neighborhoods including holy shrines, is the capital of a future Palestinian state," Rabou noted. The Palestinians and Israel concluded last Saturday six-day marathon negotiations after issuing a joint statement on progress that has been achieved. Israel intended to reach a peace agreement with the Palestinians to boost Barak's chances for reelection. |
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