Arafat Pledges to Fight Terrorism Against Israelis : Mideast: His response to U.S. push meets the Jewish state’s minimum demand for pulling troops from West Bank cities.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, responding to a firm push from U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher, promised Wednesday that his self-rule government will do all it can to stop terrorism against Israelis, meeting Israel’s minimum demand for pulling its troops out of West Bank cities.

“We are looking to have very quickly elections, but at the same time we are putting into consideration the needs of security for the Israelis, and we are ready to discuss it in detail with them,” Arafat said, as Christopher stood next to him in the seaside headquarters of the Palestinian Authority.

The Palestine Liberation Organization chairman’s carefully worded pledge was prompted by Christopher, who said Tuesday that Israel cannot be expected to withdraw its West Bank occupation force until the security of Israelis is assured.

Israeli officials have hinted that they will delay or cancel the pullout if a recent spate of terrorist incidents continues.

Under the terms of the peace agreement approved by Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, Israel is required to withdraw its troops from Palestinian cities and towns in advance of Palestinian elections. Israel and the PLO are negotiating in Cairo over the date and the conditions for the elections.

The Israeli Cabinet, meanwhile, debated for a second day the future of Jewish settlements in the West Bank after Israeli forces are pulled back, but the ministers were apparently divided over whether to uproot the communities, many of them small and isolated.

Christopher traveled in a bulletproof car on the two-hour trip from Jerusalem to Gaza to hold a meeting of just under an hour with Arafat. U.S. officials said Christopher’s visit was intended to help Arafat reverse his plummeting popularity with the Palestinian public, although the officials conceded that Washington has no friends and little influence among anti-Arafat extremists. Nevertheless, both the United States and Israel believe that the success of the peace process is linked to Arafat’s political strength.

The PLO chairman is beset by festering problems, including friction with Israel, a shortage of funds for self-government and bloody conflict between his police and anti-Arafat Islamic fundamentalists.

“I came to Gaza again today to demonstrate the importance the United States attaches to the success of the Palestinian self-government,” said Christopher, who returned to Jerusalem afterward.

Underlining Arafat’s security pledge, Christopher said the PLO chairman “made it clear that he understands the responsibilities and commitments that he has undertaken in the (peace pact) and that he intends to carry out those responsibilities against terror and violence.”

A senior U.S. official said later that the Israelis realize that the Palestinian police cannot wipe out the terrorism that the Israeli police and army have been unable to stop for decades. However, the official said, Israel wants to be assured that the authority will do all it can to deal with the problem.

Christopher’s visit to Gaza came less than a week after the World Bank and other international aid donors agreed at a U.S.-sponsored conference to give the Palestinian Authority more than $100 million to balance its budget through March 31. In exchange, Arafat agreed to reforms designed to ensure that the money would be properly spent.

Christopher later said the session was “the best meeting I’ve ever had” with Arafat, a U.S. official said. The official added that Arafat was upbeat about his negotiations with Israel pending a meeting today with Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres. Arafat meets Saturday in Oslo with Rabin as he and the prime minister receive the Nobel Peace Prize for their peace accord.

Meanwhile, U.S. officials said Rabin and Syrian President Hafez Assad assured Christopher that they will end a spate of pessimistic assessments of their U.S.-mediated peace talks. In recent weeks, both officials have complained that the negotiations are nearing a dead end.

“I am convinced that creating a more pleasant and calm atmosphere, with fewer bombastic pronouncements, will allow for the return of an atmosphere that will provide a chance for furthering the process,” Rabin said after a morning meeting in Jerusalem with Christopher.

Rabin said Christopher’s meetings Tuesday in Damascus, Syria, had nudged the two sides a bit closer to a peace agreement.

Christopher returns to the United States today without going back to Damascus to report on his meetings with Rabin.

Rabin has emphasized repeatedly that no Israeli settlement would be removed under the agreements signed so far with the PLO, but other ministers told the Cabinet session that communities that pose security risks, either for the residents or the troops guarding them, should be moved.

Kempster reported from Gaza City and Parks from Jerusalem.