Prospect of Arafat Bombshell Dims

GAZA CITY —  Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat on Tuesday gave the strongest signal yet that he will bow to appeals from the United States and put off a promised declaration of statehood.

Launching a crucial debate here by the Palestinian Central Council, the Palestine Liberation Organization’s mini-parliament, Arafat said the Palestinians have a right to establish an independent state but indicated that the timing is not right.

The United States and much of the international community have urged Arafat not to carry out a pledge to declare statehood unilaterally May 4, the date set in the original Israeli-Palestinian peace accords as the deadline for a permanent agreement.

Many have warned the Palestinian leader that a unilateral declaration could affect a tight election campaign underway in Israel and hurt chances for reviving the peace process after the May 17 vote.

“We are going through a very delicate period in the history of our people, a period during which we cannot afford to make any mistakes,” the official Palestinian news agency, WAFA, quoted Arafat as telling the council members. The meeting at Arafat’s headquarters here was closed to the media.

“We don’t need to affirm our state because we are actually exercising statehood,” he said, according to WAFA.

Many Palestinians and Israelis describe the Palestinian territories in the West Bank and Gaza Strip as a “virtual state.” The territories are ruled by Arafat’s semiautonomous Palestinian Authority, which has its own stamps, flag and airport. But Tuesday’s statement appeared to be the first time that Arafat has made similar comments, at least in such a forum.

Arafat convened the 124-member council, which is packed with his allies, to gain support for what seems an almost certain decision to delay the declaration.

But a conclusion could be days away, with some officials saying that the council’s decision may be put off until after the Israeli elections.

In a letter delivered Monday, President Clinton urged the Palestinian leader to agree to a one-year extension of the peace process and encouraged both sides to engage in accelerated talks aimed at achieving a final settlement.