Abbas will not talk peace unless Arafat is free to travel

PALESTINIAN prime minister-designate Mahmoud Abbas yesterday said he would not visit foreign capitals to discuss peace moves until Israel allowed President Yasser Arafat to travel freely again.

US President George W Bush is due to unveil a “road map” shortly, aimed at reviving negotiations after two and a half years of bloodshed in the Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation, and Abbas’s stand may delay such talks.

Analysts say Abbas fears that accepting a White House invitation would make him look like a US lackey in Palestinian eyes unless Israel stops trying to isolate Arafat.