Powell to head to Mideast; Zinni to visit Arafat

Amid criticism, Bush steps up U.S. role

Powell looks on as Bush makes a statement in White House on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. envoy Anthony Zinni plans to meet with besieged Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on Friday as Secretary of State Colin Powell prepares to head for the Middle East in a new U.S. push to end the escalating conflict.

"The storms of violence cannot go on," President Bush told reporters Thursday as he announced Powell's mission. "Enough is enough."

Bush called on Israel to end its nearly week-long incursion into the West Bank -- a call repeated Thursday evening at the United Nations, where the Security Council unanimously passed a resolution demanding Israel withdraw from Palestinian cities "without delay."

He also had harsh words for Arafat, saying the Palestinian leader had "betrayed the hopes" of his people and not consistently opposed terrorist activity. He also condemned recent suicide bombings and said those who have carried them out "are not martyrs, they are murderers." (Bush transcript)

Bush announced Powell would head to the region to work for a cease-fire and the end of violence between Israel and the Palestinians, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Ramallah and other Palestinian cities, and the implementation of the Tenet and Mitchell peace plans. (The Tenet Plan)

"He will work to implement United Nations Resolution 1402 -- an immediate and meaningful cease-fire, an end to terror and violence and incitement; withdrawal of Israel troops from Palestinian cities, including Ramallah; implementation of the already-agreed-upon Tenet and Mitchell plans, which will lead to political settlement," Bush said.

The decision comes amid mounting criticism of the way the Bush administration has handled the Israeli-Palestinian crisis. Arab countries in particular have said the administration was not doing enough to end the surging violence: Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak warned Bush this week that the Israeli invasion of Palestinian territories could spin out of control into a wider conflict. (Full story)

In actions Israel said are designed to dismantle the Palestinian terrorist network, its forces now occupy nearly all of the West Bank's major cities.(More on the military operations)

Earlier in the day, the Israeli government reversed an earlier position and granted a U.S. request to let Zinni visit the Palestinian Authority compound in Ramallah, where Arafat has been under siege by Israeli tanks and troops since March 29. Zinni met with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Thursday.

Arafat responded to Bush's comments by saying the Palestinian leadership is "committed to the peace process" and "committed to the statement of President Bush without conditions." But in a written statement read to CNN by chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat, Arafat not renounce terrorism, as Bush demanded.

The escalation of the conflict will make Powell's mission all the more difficult. And Bush's comments at the White House Thursday signaled a growing concern about the escalation of violence and the effect the crisis is having on U.S. relations with Arab nations in the region.

Bush supports Israel, Palestinian people

Bush on Thursday mixed words of support for Israel with the same for the Palestinian people and their aspirations for an independent state.

"America recognizes Israel's right to defend itself from terror," Bush said. "Yet, to lay the foundations of future peace, I ask Israel to halt incursions into Palestinian-controlled areas and begin the withdrawal from those cities it has recently occupied. I speak as a committed friend of Israel."

But he again had hard words for Arafat, saying the Palestinian leader had "betrayed the hopes" of his people by not consistently opposing terrorist activity.

Erakat said he welcomes Powell's participation in the peace process, but took issue with Bush's defense of Israel's recent military action. He called Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories "the highest form of terrorism."

Alon Pinkus, Israel's consul general in the United States, said Israel would comply with the U.S. president's wishes "once we achieve what we set out to achieve." That goal, he said, is to destroy terrorism. And Deputy Defense Minister Dalia Rabin Pelosoff told CNN that much of the responsibility for bringing about an Israeli withdrawal lies with Arafat.

"Until he himself says, in his voice, that he is ready to say that Israel has the right to exist as a Jewish state, we cannot give up and we cannot withdraw our forces yet," she said.

Rabin Pelosoff said she welcomes Powell's mission and will cooperate with him. "But our withdrawal won't be automatic, and won't be without any kind of agreement," she said.

She said she is anxious to hear what comes from Zinni's planned meeting with Arafat Friday. "We hope that he will come back with some kind of answer from the chairman and we'll have to consider our next moves according to that."

Annan calls Bush move 'encouraging'

The U.N. resolution passed Thursday endorsed Powell's trip. In comments before the Security Council vote, Secretary-General Kofi Annan called the U.S. decision to send Powell to the region "encouraging" and urged Israel to heed Bush's call to withdraw from Palestinian areas.

Annan said Israel's recent actions "do not bode well for stabilizing the situation and renewing political talks." He criticized Arafat for failing to take action against terrorism, but warned Israel that "self-defense is not a blank check."

"It would be a miscalculation of monumental proportions to believe that removing Chairman Arafat from the political scene and dismantling the Palestinian Authority would create conditions where Israel can achieve security for itself," he said.

As for the Palestinians, Annan said, "The Palestinian Authority seems to believe that failing to act against terrorism, and inducing turmoil, chaos and instability, will cause the government and people of Israel to buckle. They will not."

Annan also expressed concern about the escalation of violence along the Blue Line, the U.N.-designated boundary between Israel and Lebanon.

"There seem to be efforts coming from Lebanese territory to deliberately create instability along the Blue Line," Annan said.

Diplomats from the European Union also held meetings with Israeli leaders Thursday in an attempt to resolve the conflict. Sharon's spokesman Ra'anan Gissin said EU officials would not be allowed to meet with Arafat.