Suicide bomber blows peace talks off track

A Palestinian suicide bomber blew himself into martydom in the heart of Jerusalem today, killed two others and dealt yet another grievous blow to peace hopes.

Israel immediately pulled out of truce talks due to be held tonight and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon called a meeting of his security cabinet.

The blast, claimed by a militia linked to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, came a day after an Islamic militant killed himself and seven others in a suicide bombing on a bus in northern Israel.

Today’s attacker chose to hit bustling King George Street, a frequent target for suicide bombers.

The bomber had raised suspicions, said a witness, Adi Aluz. He said the 22-year-old from the West Bank was wearing a denim coat with a hood and kept smiling and looking backward.

‘‘I started following him,’’ Aluz said. ‘‘I told two cops about him, what he was wearing. They started following him. By the time they got to him he was already at King George Street. By that time, he blew up.’’

Shocked bystanders hugged each other, some crying or holding their hands to their faces as ambulances, sirens wailing, evacuated the wounded.

Jerusalem Police Chief Mickey Levy said the blast killed three people, including the assailant, and wounded more than 60.

In a telephone call to The Associated Press, the attack was claimed by the Al Aqsa Brigades, a militia linked to Arafat’s Fatah movement. The caller identified the assailant as Mohammed Hashaika, 22, of the West Bank village of Talooza.

There was no immediate Palestinian Authority comment. On Wednesday, official Palestinian statements called on militants not to attack civilians inside Israel.

Israeli officials said the attack showed Arafat was not interested in a cease-fire.

‘‘This is the Palestinian reaction to the good-faith measures of the Israeli government that included a lack of a response to the terrorist attack yesterday,’’ said Gideon Meir, a government spokesman.

‘‘He (Arafat) is trying to draw Israel into a harsh reaction, to win points with world public opinion.’’

In response, a round of truce talks planned for tonight was cancelled. The Palestinian security chief in the West Bank, Jibril Rajoub, said he was en route to the talks when he was informed by US officials that his Israeli counterparts had called it off.

President George Bush said he was disappointed with Yasser Arafat.

Speaking just the Jerusalem attack, Bush said he was hopeful Arafat would make a maximum effort to end 18 months of Israeli-Palestinian violence.

‘‘I, frankly, have been disappointed in his performance,’’ he said in the Oval Office after meeting Vice President Dick Cheney, who had just returned from the region.

Cheney said he was ready to go back to the Mideast ‘‘almost immediately’’ To meet Arafat if the Palestinian leader met US Conditions, which include executing the ceasefire plan.