Arab leaders criticize peace proposal

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - Arab foreign ministers criticized key points of President Clinton's peace proposal yesterday, insisting Palestinians have a "sacred" right to return to Israel, a position flatly rejected by Israel.

But Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said he still hoped a peace deal with Israel could be reached before Clinton leaves office in two weeks.

The Arab League foreign ministers objected to a portion of the U.S. proposal that would surrender the rights of millions of Palestinian refugees now in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and elsewhere to return to homes in Israel. In exchange, the Palestinians would gain control of an important holy site in Jerusalem.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak insisted yesterday that he would not back down on the refugee question and repeated his refusal to sign an agreement giving the Palestinians sovereignty over the Jerusalem site, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary.

"We cannot continue along this path at any price. We will not accept under any circumstances the right of return to Israel," Barak told a rally in Tel Aviv.

"I have already said and I say again, I will not sign any document that transfers the sovereignty on the Temple Mount to the Palestinians," he added.

Arafat left the Arab League meeting in Cairo without comment, but upon reaching Gaza said he still held out hope that a deal could be struck before Clinton's term ends Jan. 20.

"We hope that, and we hope that as President Clinton promised, that he will exert his efforts before the end of the period," Arafat said.

But with positions hardening on both sides, it was unclear how much progress could be made.

Israel says an influx of Palestinian refugees would destabilize the country by upsetting the balance between Jews and Arabs.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa, speaking as the chairman of the Arab League meeting, said the ministers considered the right of the Palestinian refugees to return to Israel to be "sacred."

"I would like to point out that Lebanon has totally rejected the idea of resettling the Palestinian refugees (permanently) and insisted on the right of the Palestinians to return. We believe that this is a sacred right," Moussa said.

In Israel, Foreign Ministry spokesman Noam Katz said his government was engaged with the Palestinians, not the Arab League. Israel, Katz said, was trying to determine if Arafat's reported conditional acceptance "falls within the parameters of the Clinton proposals. If it does, and if a drastic drop takes place in the level of violence, then we will consider in a positive spirit resumption of the negotiations.

On Wednesday, an aide in Washington said Arafat had conditionally accepted the U.S. proposal after two meetings with Clinton.

Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Ephraim Sneh called on Arafat to issue a cease-fire order within 24 hours to back up his promise to Clinton to quell the violence, spokesman Hillel Fertouk said.

Moussa said the foreign ministers also were concerned the Palestinians had not been assured full sovereignty over east Jerusalem and the city's Muslim holy sites.

He said Arabs wanted further clarifications from the Americans and that the issues of Jerusalem and the refugees took up most of yesterday's discussions.

Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa reportedly opened yesterday's Arab League meeting by saying the plan should not even be discussed. The meeting was closed, but a source speaking on condition of anonymity said al-Sharaa called on the Arab League to instead concentrate on supporting the Palestinian uprising.

Arabs ranging from moderate to radical in their stance toward Israel have rejected the U.S. formula. The radical Palestinian Hamas movement said Thursday that with his formula, Clinton had virtually adopted "Zionist proposals, conditions and visions.

Iran's English-language newspaper Iran Daily said that "for the Palestinians, the right of return is as clear as the sun. It can't be made foggy, hazy or nebulous."

Palestinian-Israeli clashes have killed more than 350 people - most of them Palestinian - in the last three months.

Israel sent its chief negotiator to Washington yesterday for talks with U.S. officials to get clarifications on the Palestinian stance.

Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said the next step in the peace process depends on the outcome of these contacts.

"We are committed to exerting a great effort to reach an agreement but I think it will be very difficult to reach an agreement before the end of President Clinton's term. We are talking about very difficult issues," he said.

Israel too remains deeply skeptical that a peace agreement could be concluded before Clinton's term ends. "It is beyond human power to complete the negotiations in such a short time," the Israeli foreign minister, Shlomo Ben-Ami, told Israel radio.

AP PHOTO

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, left, leaves the Arab League headquarters in Cairo after meeting with Arab foreign ministers yesterday.