The postponed Sharm el-Sheikh meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is expected to take place early next week, with a Washington summit shortly after, reported the Jerusalem Post newspaper, quoting Arafat's adviser Bassam Abu Sharif as saying Thursday.
He added that it was Mubarak rather than Barak or Arafat who decided to postpone Thursday's planned meeting, because he felt it was premature to hold the summit while both sides still needed to clarify some points of the US proposal, said the paper.
There was no Israeli confirmation of the new schedule, according to the paper.
Just hours before Barak and Arafat were to meet at the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, an official with the Egyptian government's press service announced that the summit was cancelled, according to AFP.
But Arafat still traveled to Egypt for consultations with Mubarak, one of his key allies in the Arab world, and Barak's office announced that a potential trip to Egypt "will be re-examined" later Thursday.
There was no immediate reaction from Barak after Arafat and Mubarak ended their meeting Thursday, said AFP.
The summit's breakdown was deja vu for Mubarak, whose planned meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh on October 5 between Arafat and Barak, with US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright participating broke down.
Earlier in the day, after an Israeli cabinet meeting on US President Bill Clinton's bridging proposals, Barak called US National Security Adviser Sandy Berger and told him that Israel would accept Clinton's ideas as a basis for further negotiations, said the paper.
Arafat, on the other hand, has not yet relayed a clear message to Clinton.
Returning to Gaza after his meeting with Mubarak, he said that the Palestinian leadership still needs to study the proposals.
Abu Sharif said that Arafat did not reject the US draft, but both he and the Israelis need clarifications on important details.
He predicted that it will take some 48 to 72 hours for the Americans to give the sides some answers to their questions, then the leaders will meet in Sharm el-Sheikh, before meeting Clinton, separately and later together, in Washington, according to the Jerusalem Post.
According to AFP, the Palestinians, despite their dislike for Barak, are aware that they would likely win far fewer concessions if the election is won by hard-liner Ariel Sharon, who has ruled out any compromise on Jerusalem.
Clinton, meanwhile, is hoping to cement a deal before he leaves office on January 20th, said the agency -- (Several Sources)
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