Arafat Says He Is Ready for 'Unconditional Cease-Fire'
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Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said Saturday that he was ready for an "immediate and unconditional cease-fire."
Arafat spoke a day after a suicide bomber blew himself up outside a Tel Aviv disco, killing 17 Israelis and wounding scores of others.
Speaking at his headquarters in the West Bank town of Ramallah, Arafat said he condemned the attack.
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"We are ready to make all possible efforts to stop the bloodshed of our people and the Israelis and to do everything necessary for an immediate and unconditional cease-fire," Arafat said after a meeting with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had announced two weeks ago that he would unilaterally observe a truce and urged the Palestinians to do the same.
At the time, the Palestinians dismissed Sharon's gesture as a ploy, and said the violence only could end once Israel lifted its blockade of Palestinian areas and halted settlement expansion.
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Arafat's announcement came as Israel's Cabinet was meeting in Tel Aviv to discuss a possible response to the suicide bombing, the deadliest in five years.