Barghouti won't stand if Abbas meets terms

Jailed Tanzim leader Marwan Barghouti is expected to withdraw from the race for leadership of the Palestinian Authority in the coming days, say senior Fatah sources, if his political demands are met by his election rival, former prime minister Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen).

Sources in the office of Hani al-Hassan, a member of Fatah's central council who oversees the Fatah offices in the territories, said yesterday that an announcement from Barghouti "is expected in the next 24 hours."

A withdrawal by Barghouti, a popular grassroots figure, would end a simmering political crisis and all but assure victory for Abbas, a moderate favored by Israel and the United States as a potential peacemaker. The two are running neck-and-neck in opinion polls for the January 9 ballot for a successor to Yasser Arafat.

A victory for Barghouti would pose problems for reviving long-stalled peace talks with Israel. He is serving five life terms after an Israeli court convicted him of ordering attacks that killed Israelis. He has denied involvement in violence.

Barghouti has presented a list of demands, including East Jerusalem as capital of a future Palestinian state, in line with traditional negotiating positions already held by Abbas. "If Abbas agrees to adopt these points, Marwan will withdraw and an announcement will be made very soon," the senior Fatah official said yesterday.

As his conditions for exiting the race, Barghouti wants Abbas's pledge to put on his agenda demands for a just solution to the refugee problem, Israel's release of Palestinian prisoners and a halt to arrests and killings of militants. He also wants Abbas to insist that Israel pull back forces from the West Bank before the election and keep them out afterward, and to halt construction of the separation wall, the Fatah official said.

Israel says it will consider easing its military grip if a moderate leadership takes power. It has also promised to allow an orderly election, but will keep in place measures it deems necessary to keep suicide bombers out of Israel.

An Israeli Arab lawmaker said Barghouti had told him during a jailhouse visit that he was considering dropping out to avoid splitting Fatah, which named Abbas as its official candidate. The remaining contenders are considered long shots.

Meanwhile, Hassan Hareishe, temporary chairman of the Palestinian Legislative Council and one of 10 people who put forward their candidacy for the leadership race, announced yesterday that he was withdrawing for personal reasons.

Another candidate, Mustafa Barghouti, convened a press conference in Ramallah and protested his inability to travel to the Gaza Strip and certain parts of the West Bank to hold election rallies, charging that travel restrictions were undermining his chances in the vote.

Mustafa Barghouti also protested the fact that the Palestinian leadership, headed by Abu Mazen, was enjoying international exposure and support that was not on offer to the independent candidates.