Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon both on Wednesday assured US President George W Bush that they would work to implement the Mitchell report on Middle East violence, the White House said. In separate telephone calls on Wednesday, Bush had urged both leaders to seize the opportunity to end Middle East violence by implementing the recommendations published on Monday by a committee headed by former US Senator George Mitchell. White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said that their response was that both agreed to work with US on a framework for the implementation of the Mitchell Committee report.
Bush urged them to work with US to develop a framework for implementation of the (report's) recommendations, including a ceasefire and confidence-building measures, said a US official, speaking on condition of anonymity. Earlier, an aide to Arafat said the Palestinian leader had urged Bush to intervene to put a halt to Israeli attacks following several incidents in the Gaza Strip.
Arafat asked President Bush to work to stop the Israeli aggression and Israeli escalation against the Palestinian people, Arafat aide Nabil Abu Rudeina said in Paris. He said that the Palestinian leader made the appeal when Bush telephoned him in Paris, where Arafat is due to hold talks with French leaders on the latest efforts to end the eight- month wave of violence in the Middle East.
Bureau Report