Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, November 3, 1993 TAG: 9311030110
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Los Angeles Times
DATELINE: JERUSALEM LENGTH: Medium
Nabil Shaath, the chief Palestinian delegate at the negotiations, said Israel's proposal amounted to a redeployment of its forces in Gaza and the Jericho area on the West Bank and did not constitute the withdrawal that Palestinians believe had been agreed upon.
"The plan in our mind falls far short of the requirements of the declaration of principles [on Palestinian autonomy] and, therefore, we are suspending the meetings here to go back to our leadership," Shaath said in the Egyptian resort town of Taba.
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin minimized the dispute, saying "mini-crises were expected" during the negotiations.
"There will be ups and downs - don't worry," Rabin said. "We will not compromise on anything that is linked to the security needs. And we must be patient."
Nevertheless the suspension - Israeli officials expect the negotiations to resume Monday - was the first serious problem since the talks began three weeks ago. Both Israeli and Palestinian officials are concerned the delegations may not meet their Dec. 13 deadline for a program implementing the autonomy agreement.
Shaath said he would return to Tunis to confer with PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat. He urged the Israeli delegates to consult their government to "come up with an interpretation that would allow us to proceed smoothly."
Maj. Gen. Amnon Shahak, the chief Israeli delegate, acknowledged that the Palestinians interpreted the basic agreement much differently than did Israel and said he respected their decision to confer with Arafat before responding to Israel's proposal. "This is not a setback," Shahak said.
That decision was made by Arafat, according to Palestinian sources, who said he felt that Israel was not abiding by the basic accord - and that the delegation was not tough enough in answering the Israeli proposal.
According to sources close to the talks, the Israeli plan provides for a pullback from Gaza towns and refugee camps, the construction of new security roads to Israel through unpopulated areas and the concentration of forces around three fenced-off enclaves of Jewish settlements in northern Gaza, near Gaza City and in southern Gaza.
One issue is the size of these Israeli forces and where they will be stationed, the sources said; another is whether the troops would have full access to all the roads through Palestinian areas or just those leading to the settlements, and a third is Israel's insistence on full control of entry into the two areas.
by CNB