Shamir, Aides Discuss Vote in Occupied Areas

Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir met with aides after he was released from the hospital Friday to discuss a draft text of his election plan for the occupied territories.

Meanwhile, Israeli troops shot and killed a 24-year-old Palestinian and at least 10 other were wounded in confrontations between soldiers and stone throwers in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, Arab reports said.

Shamir and several close advisers, including Justice Minister Dan Meridor, met at the prime minister’s Jerusalem home Friday shortly after Shamir was released from Hadassah Hospital. He was hospitalized for fatigue Wednesday after he complained of feeling weak and tired. He underwent tests, but hospital officials declined comment on the type of tests.

Shamir’s Proposal

Shamir’s proposal to end the 17-month rebellion in the occupied lands involves elections to choose Palestinian representatives who would negotiate with Israel for limited autonomy. Talks would follow three years later on a permanent settlement.

Shamir called meetings for today and Sunday to consider guidelines for the elections, the first with Cabinet ministers of his right-wing Likud Party and the second with the full Cabinet, including members of the left-leaning Labor Party.

“What we are bringing are the main principles, the skeleton of the plan, without getting into details,” said a Shamir aide who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The meetings come during a weekend visit by U.S. officials who are expected to press Shamir for specifics.

Both Radio Moscow and the Abu Dhabi newspaper Al Ittihad reported that Palestine Liberation Organization chief Yasser Arafat will accept the elections if they are held under international supervision. Five confrontations erupted Friday in the Gaza Strip and one in the West Bank town of Al Birah, just north of Jerusalem.

The worst was in Gaza City, where troops opened fire on stone-throwing youths and shot Mahmoud Awad Akraa in the head. Arab hospital officials said the man was dead on arrival.