Arafat reconsidering independence call

Jakarta - The Palestinian President, Mr Yasser Arafat, said yesterday the Palestinian Liberation Organisation is reassessing …

Jakarta - The Palestinian President, Mr Yasser Arafat, said yesterday the Palestinian Liberation Organisation is reassessing its plan to formally declare the independence of the Palestinian state on September 13th.

Mr Arafat said a decision on whether to declare the state of Palestine would be taken only at "the beginning of next month. We have decided the course, but we have to reassess this," he said after meeting the Indonesian President, Mr Abdurrahman Wahid, in Jakarta.

  • Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date

  • Sign up for push alerts to get the best breaking news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone

  • Listen to In The News podcast daily for a deep dive on the stories that matter