American mediator Gen. Anthony Zinni canceled his planned meeting today with Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, and met with Yasser Arafat instead. Zinni issued an ultimatum of sorts yesterday when he told Israeli and Palestinian military leaders that he would leave the region if no real progress towards a ceasefire was achieved within the next 48 hours. He participated in a high-level session between the Israelis and PLO men yesterday. Israeli sources say that the ultimatum is directed more towards the Palestinian Authority.
Minister Tzippy Livni explained to Arutz-7 today why Israel was pressuring Zinni not to leave the region: \"We\'re interested in the continuation of American and worldwide pressure on Arafat, and this is why we\'re asking Zinni to stay. His main mission is to achieve a ceasefire, therefore his demands are now mainly directed towards the Palestinians; it could be that if things change, and there is a ceasefire, then there will be demands on both sides…\" She agreed that she would not mind if Arafat were to be expelled from the region, but \"this is not on the agenda at present.\"
Arafat withdrew his request that Israel allow him to leave the autonomous areas and attend the Qatar conference of Islamic states, in the realization that most of the government, including Prime Minister Sharon, was against the idea. Sharon said that Arafat has much work to do in subduing terrorism, and cannot take time off to attend the conference.
Minister Tzippy Livni explained to Arutz-7 today why Israel was pressuring Zinni not to leave the region: \"We\'re interested in the continuation of American and worldwide pressure on Arafat, and this is why we\'re asking Zinni to stay. His main mission is to achieve a ceasefire, therefore his demands are now mainly directed towards the Palestinians; it could be that if things change, and there is a ceasefire, then there will be demands on both sides…\" She agreed that she would not mind if Arafat were to be expelled from the region, but \"this is not on the agenda at present.\"
Arafat withdrew his request that Israel allow him to leave the autonomous areas and attend the Qatar conference of Islamic states, in the realization that most of the government, including Prime Minister Sharon, was against the idea. Sharon said that Arafat has much work to do in subduing terrorism, and cannot take time off to attend the conference.