Palestinian President Yasser Arafat will try to overcome differences with political rivals to create a united front against Israel, a top official said, as US President George W. Bush defended his Middle East policy from mounting criticism, according to AFP.
Speaking in Texas, Bush insisted only Israel and the Palestinians could end escalating violence, as even Washington's closest allies in the region raised concern about the administration's hands-off policy as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict deepens.
Palestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo was quoted by the agency as saying that Arafat planned to hold a meeting over the "coming days" to try to establish a national dialogue among the diverse Palestinian groups after Israel vowed to continue killing Palestinian militants it deemed a security threat.
Earlier in the day, Palestinian State Minister for Jerusalem Affairs Zeyad Abu Zayad told Israel Radio that Israel's policy of assassinations was pushing the Palestinian public to adopt a more extreme stand.
"There is growing support and solidarity among the Palestinian population for Hamas and Islamic Jihad," Abu Zayad said.
He said Israel's attacks, which have killed nine Hamas members since July 17, were pushing Palestinians into more extremist positions and making it more difficult for the Palestinian Authority to exercise power.
Hamas and Islamic Jihad oppose Arafat's Palestinian Authority agreeing to any form of compromise with Israel to end the conflict, and have previously rejected overtures by Arafat for a coalition.
But in the wake of the sustained Israeli assassination campaign, Abed Rabbo said Arafat wanted to meet with all the organizations' leaders to open lines of communication.
"The Palestinian Authority will form a committee of high officials to start a national dialogue with Palestinian organizations and parties," Abed Rabbo said.
"The meeting will be between all the associations and will be headed by Yasser Arafat," he said, adding it would cover all security, political and economic issues.
A senior Hamas leader, Ismael Haneyyeh, said his organization would consider attending the meeting.
"Nothing officially has been proposed to us but all the time we call upon Hamas to unify the Palestinian ranks to face the Zionist enemy," he told AFP. "This (proposal) is positive and, when it is officially presented to us, we will study it."
An Islamic Jihad official was less enthusiastic, when asked if his group would attend, preferring to offer only encouragement for uniting Palestinians to defeat Israel.
On a trip to Jordan, Arafat also hinted Tuesday he would support a Palestinian national unity government, as proposed the day before by Fateh leader Marwan Barghouthi.
"We would react favorably to approaches from all those who may wish to join the current government," Arafat said when asked about forming a government with Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
The move toward a united front came as Israel and the Palestinians each demanded that the other arrest extremists on their own sides.
The Palestinians said they had submitted a list of 60 "criminals," mostly armed Jewish settlers in Palestinian territories occupied by Israel, who they wanted to see behind bars.
Israel issued a list of its seven "most wanted" Palestinian suspects, warning that it would continue to attack suspected militants if the Palestinians made no move to detain them – Albawaba.com
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