Two Palestinians dead in fresh fighting

Two Palestinian teenagers have been shot dead as fighting again flared in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Two Palestinian teenagers have been shot dead as fighting again flared in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

A 15-year-old boy was killed by a bullet to the chest in the West Bank town of Tulkarem, and a 17-year-old was hit in the back in the Gaza Strip. A 15-year-old boy has also lost his sight after being hit by gunfire, according to doctors at the Shifa hospital in Gaza.

Violence erupted despite a ceasefire being called five days ago.

Both Israeli and Palestinians kept up the rhetoric, with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak accusing Palestinians of failing to implement the truce and the Palestinians demanded international peacekeepers and expanded foreign mediation be brought in.

As Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat prepare to head to Washington for separate meetings with US President Bill Clinton, they remained sharply at odds on how to stop the violence and revive suspended peace talks.

"We see a certain effort by Chairman Arafat to calm down the situation, but clearly the results show that there is no real reduction in the violence," Barak said.

The ceasefire is "not being implemented by the other side ... and we are being forced to act accordingly."

The Palestinians complained that US mediation in Mideast peacemaking has been ineffective and demanded that the United Nations, the European Union, Russia and China be included in future talks.

The Palestinians also raised the possibility of an international peacekeeping force.

"Since the United States has failed to persuade Israel to implement the agreements, there is a need for other parties to be involved in this process," said Arafat aide Nabil Aburdeneh.

Israel has adamantly rejected any international peacekeeping force, and also wants its leading ally, the United States, to keep its role as the main mediator.

In another development, a senior Palestinian official said the Palestinians have no intention of unilaterally declaring statehood at a November 15 meeting of their Central Council.

The date marks the 12th anniversary of a symbolic statehood declaration, and there has been speculation the Palestinians would act on the anniversary, though it would be sure to bring a harsh response from Israel, including annexation of parts of the West Bank.

"It's not our intention to declare a state in the coming Central Council session, there were no plans to do so," said Palestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo.

Since the truce was reached, 13 people have died - a decline from earlier levels, but hardly the calm that had been hoped for. Overall, the violence has claimed more than 170 lives, the vast majority Palestinians.

Arafat plans to meet Clinton in Washington on Thursday, and Barak is to hold talks with the president on Sunday. With peace negotiations for a political settlement on hold, the leaders appear focused on the more immediate goal of ending the bloodletting.

"I think President Arafat will raise the issue of Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people and he will ask for the protection of the Palestinian people," said Ahmed Qureia, a senior Palestinian negotiator.

Israeli Foreign Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami said Arafat has raised the possibility of holding a three-way meeting with Clinton and Barak in Washington, but he said Israel would consider a summit only after the violence has stopped.

Israel allowed the Palestinian airport in Gaza to reopen today for one flight that brought Qatar's Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad al-Thani for a meeting with Arafat. Shortly after the riots erupted, Israel closed the airport, citing security concerns.

"This is now an important and dangerous time, not only for Palestine, but also for the whole Islamic world," Arafat told his guest.

The Palestinians say the violence was triggered by the September 28 visit of Israel's hawkish opposition leader, Ariel Sharon, to a major Jerusalem shrine revered by both Muslims and Jews.

Arafat told the US network CBS that ahead of the Sharon visit, he appealed to Barak to stop it, warning it could unleash widespread violence, but that his concerns went unheeded.

Barak's office said Monday that Arafat made no such appeal.