Recognition First, Negotiations Later

With a new round of Mideast diplomacy opening this week, Arab nations will present a plan calling for international recognition of a Palestinian state, followed by a two-year period to work out the final borders, a diplomatic source said Monday.

The talks that open Tuesday in New York are an attempt to revive Mideast peacemaking that collapsed more than a year ago amid persistent violence, and will include diplomats from the United States, the United Nations, Europe, and Russia, along with Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan.

With Israel's army occupying most Palestinian cities, and Palestinian militants attempting to carry out daily attacks, prospects for major breakthroughs appear dim.

The Arab plan, worked out in conjunction with the Palestinians, calls for Palestinian elections for a new leader and parliament in January as part of a broader reform effort, the source said.

Shortly after the balloting, the Palestinians would seek United Nations recognition for a state based on the borders that existed before the 1967 Mideast war, the diplomatic source said.

If the United Nations recognized a Palestinian state, the Israelis and Palestinians could then begin negotiations on final borders. There would be a one-year deadline to negotiate an agreement, followed by a second year to implement the deal, the source added.

Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres and Palestinian negotiator Ahmed Qureia held secret talks last year that included similar ideas, but it was never formally introduced amid the ongoing fighting.

It is not clear whether the latest proposal would receive a better reception this time.

In Egypt, Israel's defense minister was expected to try to convince President Hosni Mubarak that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat should be sidelined.

But Mubarak is likely to give Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer only a polite hearing at their talks in the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria ahead of Tuesday's meeting in New York.

Mubarak said in comments published on Monday that sidelining Arafat would be a mistake and that he had warned President George W. Bush of the "dangers" of such a move.

"Sidelining Arafat will be a big mistake we will all regret. The man with his experience and role has the loyalty of Palestinians inside and abroad," he told Kuwait's al-Seyassah daily.

Egypt has taken a key role in Middle East diplomacy since it became the first Arab state to make peace with Israel in 1979 and has been a pivotal ally of the Palestinian Authority.

Elsewhere, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell was expected to win broad approval from Arab, European, Russian and U.N. leaders on an "action plan" to assist the Palestinian people.

The plan would set up a schedule for direct assistance to humanitarian and economic programs, skirting the Palestinian Authority, which the Bush administration charges is corrupt.

The United States already channels about $142 million a year in assistance through the United Nations, the Red Cross and other private groups. In April, Powell pledged an additional $30 million in aid.

The Europeans provide about $9 million a year in assistance. Unlike U.S. aid, it goes directly to the Palestinian Authority.

Meanwhile, after a week of sharp criticism, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's Cabinet changed its position Sunday and decided not to support legislation that would prevent Arab citizens from buying land in some Jewish communities.

But the issue has not been fully settled, and Sharon said he and his government still support the idea of allowing religious and ethnic groups to have their own communities.

With respect to the statehood plan, the Palestinians have sought a deal that would create a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, which include all of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, with a capital in east Jerusalem. They have been extremely wary of any interim agreements that leave the border issue and other key questions unresolved.

Sharon has often said that he does not believe a final agreement is possible at present, and the most that could be achieved is a long-term interim arrangement that would be in place for years, perhaps even a decade or more, before a final agreement is reached.

Sharon has also said that Israel will never pull back to the 1967 borders, which he and other Israeli leaders describe as insecure for Israel.

In renewed violence Monday, Israeli troops tossed an explosive device inside a factory in the West Bank town of Qalqiliya, igniting a fire that killed a Palestinian man, according to Palestinian witnesses.

The troops initially prevented a Palestinian fire engine from approaching, but then allowed two Israeli fire trucks to extinguish the blaze, the witnesses added. About 20 workers were inside the building at the time, and all managed to escape expect the one who was killed, the witnesses reported.

The Israeli military said it was checking the report.

The army also said it arrested 10 Palestinians in the West Bank who were suspected of involvement in violence against Israel. Palestinians said a leader of the militant Islamic Jihad, Ghassan Saadi, was arrested when soldiers stormed a hideout in the Jenin refugee camp overnight. The army said it was checking the report.