Poll Finds Majority of Israelis Would Accept Palestinian State.

By VOA News

A new Israeli opinion poll has found that nearly two-thirds of those asked would accept a Palestinian state in a final Middle East peace deal. Results of the survey by the Yediot Aharonot newspaper came just two days after Israel's ruling Likud party passed a resolution

Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told parliament he would resume talks leading to a Palestinian state, if the Palestinian Authority carries out sweeping internal reforms and puts an end to attacks on Israel.

Tuesday's poll found that most Israelis, 68 percent, think Likud should have postponed its vote on the Palestinian state resolution, as requested by Sharon. He said it would hurt Israel's relations abroad. Asked who they would like to see as Likud's candidate for prime minister in elections next year, 55 percent of Israelis chose Sharon, with only 23 percent picking former Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who backed Sunday's resolution.

In an address to the Israeli parliament, Sharon called the current Palestinian Authority corrupt and dictatorial. He said permanent Israeli-Palestinian peace hinged on what he called basic structural reforms in the Palestinian leadership. After the speech, Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said the Israeli prime minister is sabotaging efforts to revive the peace process and has effectively canceled the Israeli-Palestinian agreements signed to date.

Meanwhile, in military action, Israeli forces say they killed two Palestinian intelligence officers today during a raid on a Palestinian autonomous area in the West Bank. An Israeli army spokesman said the raid occurred in the small town of Halhoul, near Hebron. He said both men were wanted for "many attacks against Israelis." The army also said soldiers arrested 14 "wanted Palestinians" overnight in villages in other parts of the West Bank.