A meeting in Gaza of the Palestinian Central Council is discussing whether or not to declare a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip next week. The Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has faced strong international pressure to back away from a pledge to declare unilateral independence next Tuesday, when the five-year interim period designed to yield a final peace with Israel ends.
In Jerusalem this morning, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanayhu welcomed yesterday's call by the White House for Israelis and Palestinians to reach a final peace deal within a year. Mr. Netanayhu said that the American statement affirmed that a final agreement cannot be reached through a unilateral declaration by the Palestinians but only through negotiations.
