Bush asks Arafat to stop Mideast violence

Thursday, 29 March 2001 12:10 (ET)

Bush asks Arafat to stop Mideast violence

By MARK KUKIS

WASHINGTON, March 29 (UPI) -- President George W. Bush on Thursday urged Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to call for an end the to Middle East violence "in a language the Palestinians can understand," a strongly worded appeal that marked deepening involvement for the administration in the region.

During a news conference at the White House, Bush said Palestinian leadership "should arrest those who perpetrated the terrorist acts" and "resume security cooperation with Israel." Bush said he ordered Secretary of State Colin Powell to telephone Arafat to underscore the message.

"The signal I'm sending to the Palestinians: Stop the violence," Bush said.

Bush also urged Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to rein in assaults by Israeli forces against Palestinians and take steps to reduce tensions.

"The government of Israel, for its part, should exercise restraint in its military response," Bush said. "It should take steps to restore normalcy to the lives of the Palestinian people by easing closures and removing checkpoints."

Bush's comments came a day after heavy fighting in Ramallah and the Gaza Strip, where Israeli helicopters struck buildings used by the Palestinian Force 17, Arafat's elite body guard units whom the Israelis accuse of being involved in terrorists attacks. The Israelis said the rocket barrage was in response to a recent series of bombings, including one Wednesday that killed two Israeli schoolboys at a bus stop near the border town of Neve Yemin.

The attack was the most significant retaliation to recent Palestinian actions since Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon took office last month. Wednesday's attacks also were evidence that Israel intends to continue a policy began under Prime Minister Ehud Barak of targeting Palestinian officials suspected of terrorism.

The ongoing violence has quickly become the most pressing foreign policy issues for Bush, who tried to distance himself from the moribund peace process in a March 20 meeting with Sharon. Bush told Sharon the White House would not try to "force peace," effectively leaving it up to the Israelis and Palestinians to find a way to end the current cycle of violence and restart negotiations.

Bush repeated his stance against pressing the sides toward negotiations, but outlined a broader approach to the crisis by the administration.

"Our goal is to encourage a series of reciprocal and parallel steps by both sides that will halt the escalation of violence, provide safety and security for civilians on both sides, and restore normalcy to the lives of everyone in the region," Bush said. -- Copyright 2001 by United Press International. All rights reserved. --

-- Anonymous, March 29, 2001