Palestinian and Israeli negotiators have had a last session of talks with the visiting American Middle East envoy, Dennis Ross, before he returns to Washington.

The talks come amid what the Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, has called an unprecedented crisis which could de-rail the Middle East peace process.

The Palestinians blamed the Israelis for the deadlock, after Mr Arafat and the Israeli prime minister, Ehud Barak, failed on Thursday to agree the next stage of the handover of occupied land to the Palestinians.

The chief Palestinian negotiator, Saeeb Erikat, said Mr Ross would present the positions of the two sides to President Clinton.

Both Israel and the Palestinians have cast doubt on whether next Sunday's deadline for a draft agreement on a final settlement can be met. An aide to Mr Barak was quoted as saying Israel remained committed to the September settlement, but the withdrawal plans would not be changed.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service