Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat hoped to reinvigorate peace talks Wednesday by addressing some of the problems plaguing the accord they signed three months ago.
Meeting for the first time since Arafat established his government in Gaza City, the leaders planned to discuss the PLO's financial crisis, accusations that Israel is favoring Jordan, and the release of thousands of Palestinian prisoners.They also hoped to talk about expanding PLO rule in the West Bank, implementing the agreement for the safe passage of Palestinians between the two auto-nomous zones, which are separat-ed by Israeli territory, and defining the size of one of those zones, the West Bank town of Jericho.
The two leaders last met July 6 in Paris after receiving a U.N. peace prize.
The Palestine Liberation Organization gained authority over the Gaza Strip and Jericho under an agreement signed May 4 in Cairo, Egypt.
But without at least $600 million in aid promised for this year, the self-rule government could go bankrupt, severely damaging the agreement.
The World Bank has demanded better accounting methods from the PLO before handing over most of the total of $2.4 billion promised over five years.
"The difficult financial situation in Gaza ... is also our problem, and it worries us very much," Environment Minister Yossi Sarid, closely involved in negotiations with the Palestinians, told Israel radio.
Dr. Ahmed Tibi, an Israeli-Arab adviser to Arafat, complained about the hesitancy to give the aid, saying there was "some controversy over how much microscopic scrutiny is required."
Sarid said Rabin would also try to allay PLO concerns that Israel is trying to push Palestinian interests aside now that it has ended its state of war with Jordan.