Ceasefire under threat as tank fire kills women

Palestinians today accused Israel of not being serious about a ceasefire after three women were killed overnight in the first violence in more than a week.

The women were killed by Israeli tank fire - the first deaths in violence since Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat called for a ceasefire on June 2 - as both sides prepared for talks with CIA chief George Tenet aimed at ensuring calm.

Israel and the Palestinians were expected to respond in the meeting later today to Tenet’s proposal to solidify a ceasefire as a first step toward resuming peace talks.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon met with senior security officials this morning to discuss Israel’s response, then went into a meeting with his Cabinet.

The Palestinian women who died lived in a Bedouin camp near the isolated Jewish settlement of Netzarim. Two other family members were injured in the tank attack, including a woman in serious condition, doctors said.

The Israeli army said soldiers fired three tank shells at the camp in response to shooting at an outpost near the settlement by two Palestinians who then ran toward the army position.

Palestinians blamed Israel for the ongoing violence that has killed 487 people on the Palestinian side and 108 on the Israeli side since September 28.

"This shows without a doubt that Israel is not interested in a ceasefire and all that they say about ceasing fire is a media stunt," Palestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo told Palestinian radio.

The meeting with Tenet in the West Bank city of Ramallah was meant to strengthen the fragile ceasefire and ensure a resumption of peace talks.

A central focus of the talks would be setting down a timetable for restoring calm, Palestinian Cabinet Minister Nabil Shaath said.

The Palestinians also were expected to demand Israel stop settlement construction as called for in a report issued last month by a commission looking into the violence that was headed by former US Senator George Mitchell.

Israeli Justice Minister Meir Sheetrit said that Israel will not agree to a strict schedule as long as any hostilities persist.

"The Palestinians can’t expect that we’ll give them a timetable for anything, including for the freezing of settlement construction or anything else, before they stop the violence," Sheetrit said.

US officials have not given details of the proposal Tenet made to the sides in a meeting on Friday.

Israel radio reported that among the main points is a call for the Palestinians to make sweeping arrests of militants and to crack down on anti-Israeli attacks.

The plan calls on Israel to halt attacks on Palestinian targets and to withdraw forces from positions it has returned to since fighting began Sept. 28, the radio said.

Other terms included: a resumption of joint security patrols, a Palestinian commitment to confiscate mortars and missiles from militants, and an agreement by the sides to exchange information on suspected militants.

US Mideast envoy William Burns has also been meeting with officials from both sides, part of stepped-up American mediation that has been accompanied by a wave of international representatives converging on the region.

Swedish Prime Minister Goran Persson was to meet with Sharon and Arafat separately today before the Tenet meeting. Sweden currently holds the presidency of the 15-nation European Union.