Advisers to Israeli Likud leader and prime ministerial candidate, Ariel Sharon, met a close aide to Palestinian President Yasser Arafat in Vienna, reported Haaretz newspaper, quoting a Palestinian official as telling Israel's radio Thursday.
The radio said that Sharon's son Omri, former foreign ministry director-general, Eitan Bentzur, and lawyer Dov Weisglas had met with a close aide to Arafat, Khaled Salam, and discussed with him "diplomatic issues."
According to the paper, the Palestinian President had requested that Sharon meet personally with Salaam, but the Likud leader had declined, saying he was too busy with his election campaign and instead sent his representives instead.
A major thrust of Sharon's campaign ahead of the February 6 election has been to try and soften his hawkish image by portraying himself as the only candidate who can forge a peace deal with the Palestinians.
"I understand that it is permissible to conduct contacts with the Palestinians under fire," Meretz leader, Yossi Sarid, told the paper.
Senior Likud Knesset member, Moshe Arens, insisted that there was a big difference between "contacts" with the Palestinians and "negotiations."
"Apparently Arafat also reads opinion polls and he is taking into account that Sharon is going to be prime minister in two weeks time," said Arens, referring to Sharon's huge poll lead over Barak, Haaretz said.
Peace talks between the current government of Ehud Barak and the Palestinians are due to resume on Thursday in Egypt after being suspended by Israel, following the killing by suspected Palestinian militants of two Israelis in the West Bank -- Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
