(Communicated by Prime Minister's Media Advisor)
Jerusalem, 2 December 1998
In the wake of violations of the Wye River Memorandum -- culminating in today's incident in Ramallah -- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after consultations with Cabinet ministers, decided this evening (Wednesday), 2.12.98, that Israel will execute the next phase of the withdrawal only if:
1. The Palestinian Authority explicitly clarifies its commitment to the agreement reached at the Wye Plantation, according to which neither prisoners with blood on their hands nor Hamas members will be released;
2. The Palestinian Authority explicitly announces both the abandonment of its intention to unilaterally declare a Palestinian state, and its commitment to the principle of continuing negotiations until the achievement of a permanent settlement, and;
3. The Palestinian Authority immediately halts the acts of incitement and violence, and immediately punishes those responsible.
The Prime Minister added that Israel views the Palestinian Authority responsible for the repeated violations of the Wye accord: "The Palestinian Authority is encouraging acts of violence, such as today's brutal attack in Ramallah, in an attempt to pressure Israel with regard to the matter of the prisoners."