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Sharon Meets with US Ambassador on Mitchell Report
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon met with U.S. Ambassador Martin Indyk overnight to discuss the report of the International Commission of Inquiry on the Israeli-Palestinian violence, Israel Radio reported on Tuesday.
The international commission, led by former U.S. Senator George Mitchell, released the report on Monday.
Sharon and Indyk discussed the framework and timetable for instituting steps proposed in the Mitchell report for ending the violence and taking confidence building measures, the radio quoted U.S. embassy sources as saying.
Meanwhile, the Israeli prime minister's office said that Israel told the Americans that a cooling-off period of at least two months was necessary before Israel would consider implementing the confidence building measures recommended in the Mitchell report.
Indyk is expected to meet with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat later Tuesday to discuss the report.
Following the release of the report, Sharon said that Israel has accepted the outline of the report but has reservations about the settlement freeze and the way the report criticizes the Israeli army's excessive use of force against the Palestinians in the occupied territories.
The Palestinians have accepted the report and called for a Middle East summit to discuss ways of implementing the report. But Israel has rejected the call.
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