(CNN) - Recent Israeli military action against Palestinian militants has killed the U.S.-backed Mideast "road map" to peace, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said Tuesday in an off-camera interview with CNN. Arafat said there was no prospect of Palestinian militant groups such as Hamas resuming a declared cease-fire with Israel. "The road map is dead, but only because of Israeli military aggression in recent weeks," he said. Arafat downplayed a reported split between himself and Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, saying the reports have been exaggerated by Israel in order to create problems within the Palestinian leadership. In Ramallah, a newspaper published by the PA carried a petition signed by 250 academics, politicians, and community leaders calling on Arafat and Abbas to settle their differences.
2003-09-03 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive