Israeli shot near Ramallah talks

FORMERLY PALESTINIAN APOLOGY While General Powell and Mr Arafat were meeting, the violence in the West Bank continued close by.

An Israeli motorist was shot in the head as he drove near a Jewish settlement north of Ramallah.

Israeli military sources say the man is in a very serious condition.

It's emerged that the Israeli Justice Minister, Yosi Beilin, has made a personal apology to one of Mr Arafat's deputies, Mahmud Abbas Abu-Mazin, for an incident in which Israeli troops fired into his West Bank office two days ago.

Mr Abbas called it a deliberate assassination attempt.

The Israeli media says Mr Beilin has telephoned Mr Abbas to say he was convinced there was no intention of harming him personally. The incident happened during clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinians demonstrating after Friday prayers.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service