The Palestine Chronology

Chmn. Arafat offers to meet with PM Rabin, a la South Africa's De Klerk and Nelson Mandela, to promote Middle East peace. (London MBC TV 7/28 in FBIS 7/29; MM 7/29)

FM Shimon Peres meets with Russian for. min. Middle East head Viktor Posuvalyuk, who later meets with Hanan Ashrawi. (Qol Yisra'el 7/28 in FBIS 7/30)

Under increasing pressure, Israel agrees to allow U.S. investigators to question Brig. Gen. Rami Dotan and others who diverted $40 million of U.S. aid for unauthorized purposes. Justice and Def. Dept. do not wholly believe that Dotan and others were acting solely in their own interests, implying that the govt. of Israel may be implicated in the fraud, which would constitute a default on Israel's aid agreements with the U.S. Another conspirator, Harold Katz, will be questioned also on his connections to Jonathan Pollard (see 6/11, 722). (WP 7/29)

West Bank towns of Nablus and al-Kabatiyya join Janin in commercial strike (see 7/27). (MM 7/28)

FM Shimon Peres and the U.S. State Dept.'s Richard Arnitage announce joint assistance project for 5 former Soviet Muslim republics. (Davar 7/30 in FBIS 7/31; MM 7/29)

Strikes break out in o.t. in protest of Israeli plans to deport 12 Palestinians. One Palestinian is killed, more than 25 others injured in confrontation with IDF in Gaza. (MM 1/8)

U.S. State Dept. confirms it has granted a visa to Nabil Sha'th, top advisor to Chmn. Arafat. Sha'th is officially visiting to address a meeting of Arab-Americans, but his visit coincides with upcoming peace talks. (MM 1/8)

Opposition MKs Zucker and Oron release documents indicating government has begun 18,000 new homes in W. Bank during past 18 months. (WP 1/9)