JERUSALEM (voa) – Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat says he will take immediate steps to halt militant attacks against Israeli civilians, and that the Palestinian leadership remains committed to making a U.S. peace mission a success.
Mr. Arafat made the pledge after a suicide bomber killed three Israelis and wounded 40 others Thursday in a busy shopping district of Jerusalem.
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell telephoned Mr. Arafat to demand action against the extremists. A State Department spokesman said Mr. Powell’s language with the Palestinian leader was “extremely tough and firm,” reflecting U.S. anger over the latest bombing.
In a statement to reporters at his West Bank headquarters in Ramallah, Mr. Arafat condemned the bombing and promised to take appropriate measures to put an end to such attacks.
Thursday’s suicide attack led Israel to cancel a scheduled three-way meeting involving top Israeli and Palestinian security officials and U.S. envoy Anthony Zinni, who have been working to implement a U.S.-brokered cease-fire plan.
However, General Zinni is still expected to meet with both sides Friday.
Responsibility for the attack in Jerusalem was claimed by the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, an offshoot of Mr. Arafat’s Fatah faction.
The United States is formally designating the radical group as a foreign terrorist organization. Five other Palestinian militant groups, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, are already on the U.S. list of about 30 foreign terrorist organizations.
