THE leaders of France, Britain and Germany made an unprecedented joint appeal to the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Palestinian President, Mr Yasser Arafat yesterday to meet immediately to calm violence raging in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
President Jacques Chirac Prime Minister John Major and Chancellor Helmut Kohl said in a letter: "We are sending you a joint, solemn appeal to make the necessary calming gestures."
Mr Chirac's office released the text in French.
The three main west European powers called for "an immediate resumption of negotiations at the highest level" and the full implementation of agreements already reached between Israel and the PLO.
"This approach appears to us to be the only way to restore calm durably in the territories and to ensure Israel's security," they said.
The leaders noted with satisfaction what they called a decision to close the controversial Israeli archeological tunnel under the Old City of Jerusalem, which sparked the outburst of violence and called for other measures in the same spirit.
The Europeans expressed strong concern that the violence could endanger the entire Middle East peace process. They appealed to the statesmanship of Mr Netanyahu and Mr Arafat "to ensure that wisdom and peace prevail in the interest of the peoples of the region".
It was the first such joint emergency policy initiative by the European Union's "Big Three" and was issued in consultation with the EU's current Irish presidency, French officials said.
They said Mr Chirac had proposed the idea to Mr Major and Dr Kohl, since the three had played host to Mr Netanyahu on his European tour earlier this week, just as the crisis was blowing up.
The aim was to maximise European influence and respond to frequent complaints that the EU was too slow and powerless in reacting to crises close to its borders.
Diplomats said intensive diplomacy was under way involving the United States, the Europeans and Egypt to get Mr Netanyahu and Mr Arafat to meet, probably in Cairo, but both men had put conditions unacceptable to the other.
Joe Carroll adds:
President Clinton was keeping in close touch with the situation in Israel and on the West Bank while campaigning in Texas but has not intervened directly.
The president was being briefed regularly by his Secretary of State, Mr Warren Christopher, who was meeting Arab state ministers at the UN and speaking by telephone to Mr Netanyahu.
A White House spokesman, Mr Mike McCurry, said that the initial reports from the region yesterday were "encouraging" and that there did not seem to be widespread violence.
Former US President, Mr Jimmy Carter, has offered to mediate between the Israelis and the Palestinians.
There was satisfaction at Israel's temporary closure of the tunnel which has sparked this weeks violence. US diplomatic sources had expressed irritation that an earlier US appeal to the Israelis to close the tunnel was rebuffed soon after the violence broke out.