Bush Hits Raid, Weighs Ending PLO Ties

President Bush said today he is considering breaking off talks with the Palestine Liberation Organization in the wake of a terrorist attack on an Israeli beach but “no decision has been made.”

Bush, speaking with reporters while on a Midwestern political trip, was asked about a report in The Washington Times that the Administration has decided to break off its 16-month dialogue with the PLO.

“I’m not prepared to make an announcement on policy at this point,” Bush said. However, he said, “our dialogue is predicated on a renunciation of terror. In my view, this is sheer terror.”

Speaking separately at a NATO conference, Secretary of State James A. Baker III said the Administration is seeking more information on the raid.

He said a decision on the U.S.-PLO talks would be made “when we are satisfied we know all we need to know.”

Bush said he’d like to see PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat “speak out . . . . I’ve expressed my outrage about the attack. Maybe I can take this opportunity to express my outrage about all the violence in the Middle East.”

Asked if he is planning to cut off the U.S.-PLO dialogue, Bush said, “We are discussing all of that. No decision has been made.”

Arafat has denied any PLO involvement in last month’s raid but has not condemned the act outright.

The Palestine Liberation Front, a PLO faction, claimed responsibility for the raid, in which six speedboats attempted to attack a crowded beach but were intercepted by Israeli security forces. The Iraq-based PLF is headed by Abul (Mohammed) Abbas, who masterminded the Achille Lauro cruise ship hijacking.

In Washington, an Administration official said a decision is not expected for a number of days. The official, who declined to be identified, said the United States has held at least four meetings with PLO representatives since the raid to discuss the organization’s views on it.