U.S. President George W. Bush met with chief Palestinian negotiator Nabil Shaath in New York in what was Bush's first meeting as president with a Palestinian official, a spokesman for Shaath's office in Gaza said.
During the meeting, which was held in Bush's private offices within the United Nation's building, Shaath emphasized the need to resolve the Middle East conflict peacefully and to establish an independent Palestinian state, the spokesman said.
"Mr Shaath spoke with Mr Bush about the need to find a solution for a comprehensive and lasting peace and the creation of an independent and viable Palestinian state," he said, according to AFP.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army said that the rockets fired over the past two days by Palestinians from the Gaza Strip that landed in the western Negev desert were Kassam 3, Ha'aretz reported Friday night.
This would be the first time that Palestinians have used the Kassam 3, which has a longer range and carries a larger explosive charge than previous versions. With a range of up to 12 kilometers, the Kassam 3 could easily hit large population centers in southern Israel.
The range of the Kassam 2 is between 5 and 6 kilometers, while Hamas boasts that the new version has a range of between 10 and 12 kilometers. According to Israeli assessments, the rockets fired over the past two days have a range of up to to 8 kilometers. In addition, the caliber of the Kassam 3 is 170mm, compared to 110mm on the previous version.
It is believed that the rockets were fired by Hamas or Islamic Jihad activists. The accuracy of the new model Kassam is still thought to be poor, the report said. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
