
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, August 30, 1993                   TAG: 9308300062
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: JERUSALEM                                LENGTH: Medium

ISRAEL SOFTENS ON PLO

Israel is on the verge of recognizing the PLO, a key step toward resolving decades of conflict, senior Israeli Cabinet members and Palestinian officials said Sunday.

Both sides could sign within days an agreement in principle to implement Palestinian autonomy in the occupied territories, starting with the Gaza Strip and the West Bank town of Jericho, sources said.

"At this time all parties are cooking an agreement," said Azmi Shoaibi, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization committee that supervises the negotiations. "It will include direct negotiations between Israel and the PLO."

Israel has refused to recognize the PLO, and has branded it a terrorist group. But informal contacts have stepped up since the center-left government of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin took power last year.

Israel radio said that in exchange for Israeli recognition of the PLO, the group would renounce terrorism and delete references in its charter that Israel interprets as supporting the Jewish state's destruction.

The reports of possible recognition brought howls of protest from Israel's right wing and from Islamic activists opposed to PLO leader Yasser Arafat. Both threatened to respond with violence.

Arafat has backed the deal despite opposition from Palestinians who demand outright independence in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. They say the PLO leader is making too many concessions to hold on to his power, which is being challenged by a growing number of fundamentalists in the occupied territories who reject any deal with Israel.

The Israeli Cabinet is expected to vote tonight to let the Israeli negotiating team pursue the autonomy plan. Foreign Minister Shimon Peres is expected to fly to Washington this week to sign it, Israel radio and the Palestinians said.

Rabin might also seek a Cabinet vote Monday on whether to recognize the PLO, which recognized Israel in 1988.

Arafat adviser Yasser Abed-Rabbo, asked on Israeli army radio about the possibility of a Rabin-Arafat summit, said, "I don't exclude the possibility in the near future."

The change comes after months of quiet exploratory meetings between PLO and Israeli officials that culminated last week.

"If the people of the PLO will contribute to peace, we will talk with them," Health Minister Chaim Ramon said Sunday night.

by CNB