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DATE=10-12-2000

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

NUMBER=2-267871

TITLE=Clinton-Mideast Wrap (L)

BYLINE=David Gollust

DATELINE=White House

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: President Clinton is mounting an extraordinary effort by telephone to try to prevent Thursday's Middle East violence from ending hopes for an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. An emergency peace summit hosted by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has become a renewed focus of discussion. VOA's David Gollust reports from the White House.

TEXT: The President spoke at least four times with Mr. Mubarak including a conference call also involving Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in his drive to prevent Thursday's violence from entirely scuttling the peace process.

Though he had resisted the idea earlier in the week, Mr. Mubarak said he was willing to host an early summit with Mr. Arafat, Israeli Prime Minister Barak and Mr. Clinton. A senior U-S official who briefed reporters here said the idea was under active discussion as a way to restore calm and political dialogue.

The official said the wounds inflicted by nearly two weeks of violence capped by the mob killing of Israeli soldiers in Ramallah and retaliatory Israeli attacks -- were quite deep and it is unrealistic to expect a return any time soon to peace negotiations that only recently appeared promising.

But he said he was heartened by the fact that Mr. Mubarak and Jordan's King Abdullah had joined Mr. Clinton in reaching out to the parties. He said there had been crises of similar magnitude before in the peace process and the parties know the only alternative to it is perpetual struggle.

Mr. Clinton rushed back from his private home in New York Thursday morning for briefings with national security advisers on Middle East events including the apparent terrorist attack on the U-S navy ship in Yemen.

In between rounds of telephone calls to regional leaders, he issued a public appeal for an end to Israeli-Palestinian hostilities:

///Clinton act///

While I understand the anguish Palestinians feel over the losses they have suffered, there can be no possible justification for mob violence. I call on both sides to undertake a cease-fire immediately and immediately to condemn all acts of violence.

///end act///

The senior official said while Mr. Arafat had expressed regret over the Ramallah events, he had not yet made the kind of clear statement condemning bloodshed that the administration was looking for.

President Clinton also spoke during the day with U-N Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who broke off a visit to Lebanon to return to a diplomatic shuttle between Mr. Arafat in Gaza and Israeli officials in Jerusalem.

Mr. Clinton cancelled an evening of political events for crisis meetings including one with Vice President Al Gore, who interrupted presidential campaigning to make his first visit to the White House since August. (Signed)

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