United Nations, Dec 02: Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has strongly criticised Israel for continuing to build the security barrier cutting deep into West Bank, asserting that it could end chances of a Middle East peace process. The continued construction of the wall by Israel, he said, amounted to rejection of the final settlement leading to an independent Palestinian state.

"The barbarism of the associated practices and repressive measures" of Israeli occupation has "further nurtured the seeds of malice and hatred," he said.

Arafat's message was read out by Palestinian envoy Nasser al-Kidwa yesterday at committee on the exercise of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people as it observed International Day of solidarity with the Palestinian people.

In his remarks on the occasion, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said recent peace initiatives by Palestinian and Israeli civil society leaders show a settlement can be reached. The Israeli government and the Palestinian authority must act now rather than wait for the other side to the make the first move, he said, expressing hope that the two prime ministers would meet soon and a ceasefire could be achieved.

"These tender shoots must be nourished. At the same time, the parties must be judged not by their stated intentions but by their actions on the ground," he said.

General Assembly President Julian Hunte of St Lucia said history showed that "problems between peoples and states could not be solved by violence and conflict," and that a two-state solution is the only way to end the conflict. Bureau Report