Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said Thursday he welcomed any Israeli withdrawal from the occupied territories and insisted the Palestinians were ready to take over security responsibilities.
"We welcome any Israeli withdrawal from any part of our land simultaneously in the Gaza Strip and in the West Bank," Arafat said in an address marking the opening of the new parliamentary session in Ramallah.
The veteran leader was warning against any withdrawals that involve no more than the transfer of settlers from one occupied territory to the other.
He stressed that any withdrawal should lead "to a complete evacuation of settlers from our occupied land by the occupation army."
Arafat also said his Palestinian Authority was ready to take over from the Israeli army and to enforce law and order.
"The Authority is capable of taking control of each zone which will be evacuated and guaranteeing law and order there," he told lawmakers.
He was referring to a plan by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon for a unilateral withdrawal from most of the Gaza Strip and the dismantling of some West Bank settlements.
Until now, the official Palestinian position has been to oppose any steps taken by the Israeli government without consulting the Palestinian Authority.
In his address, Arafat said that the Palestinian position on Sharon's unilateral project "had been sometimes misunderstood" and clarified that any withdrawal was welcome.
He nevertheless added that "the withdrawal in the interest of peace and security should be carried out through a resumption of Israeli-Palestinian dialogue aimed at implementing the roadmap."
The roadmap is the peace blueprint drafted last year by the United States, United Nations, European Union and Russia and that provides for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state by 2005.
Arafat's remarks came amid a flurry of Israeli diplomatic activity to promote Sharon's plan.
The Israeli premier was due to meet three US envoys Thursday to discuss the details of his plan, while his foreign minister, Silvan Shalom, was in Cairo to discuss Egyptian security involvement in Gaza after a possible withdrawal.
The Palestinian daily Al-Ayyam quoted Arafat's security adviser, Jibril Rajub, Thursday as saying the Palestinians had received Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's pledge to help the Palestinian security services take over.
Arafat also reiterated his call on Israel to immediately halt the construction of its separation barrier in the West Bank, charging it "killed peace, security and hope for existence".
"I tell the Israeli and the international community that we have an opportunity today to reach the peace of the brave that I signed with my late partner Yitzhak Rabin," Arafat said in reference to the Israeli premier assassinated by a Jewish extremist in 1995.
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