VOL. XLV

No 24

17 June 2002

The Political Scene

President Bush has turned down Egyptian President HusniMubaraks proposal for an interim Palestinian state and endorsed Israeli PrimeMinister Ariel Sharons demand for Palestinian reforms before negotiations(although whether he has done so absolutely and irrevocably remains to beseen). However, the idea of a transitional Palestinian state appears to bealive and well at the State Department, which has been conducting a public (andembarrassing) debate...