U.S. special envoy Anthony Zinni will not return to the Middle East at the end of this week as scheduled. In his place, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs William Burns will arrive in Israel for talks, U.S. diplomatic sources said. Burns will warn Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat that the PA's relations with the United States will be at risk if he doesn't arrest terrorists and sever his ties with Iran and the Hizbullah, Israel Radio reported.

Israeli diplomatic sources said that Zinni is unlikely to return to the region while attacks are on the rise, ynet reported. In the latest incident of an outbreak of shooting attacks, the body of an Arab-Israeli man was found Wednesday morning in his car near Sanur, south of Jenin, the victim of a drive-by shooting. Initial indications are that the man, a 30-year-old resident of Beit Hanina in east Jerusalem, was driving a car with Israeli license plates when a passing vehicle opened fire on him, evidently mistaking him for a Jew, Israel Radio reported. The suspects escaped to Palestinian-controlled Area A nearby.

"It is clear that the Palestinians are not doing enough in their war against terror," the Israeli diplomatic sources said. "Until they do so, allowing conditions for progress, it is most likely that Zinni will not return to the region."

Cabinet to review relationship with PA
U.S. officials had said on Monday that Zinni would suspend his trip to the region until the Israeli government convened and came to a decision on its relationship with the Palestinians in light of the Karine A affair. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had postponed this week's cabinet meeting on the topic, citing ongoing efforts to pass the 2002 state budget in the Knesset, but the meeting has been rescheduled for Wednesday evening.

Sharon reportedly wants the government to support resolutions that allow him more leeway in dealing with the PA and that do not infringe on understandings he has reached with the U.S. The discussion is not expected to produce extreme declarations against the PA or Chairman Yasser Arafat, Israeli diplomatic sources said.

In meetings held by Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer in anticipation of the strategic review, government officials agreed that the Karine A affair ought to be leveraged to exert intense pressure on the PA. The main strategic change that has taken place, they believe, is the formation of a tripartite alliance between the PA, Iran, and Hizbullah.

U.S. sources expressed dismay that the Palestinians have been negotiating with Israel even as they were purchasing weapons and coordinating moves with Iran, Israel Radio reported. Moreover, the U.S. is not convinced that Arafat has taken sufficient steps to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure.

PA reports arrest of PFLP leader
On Tuesday, Palestinian security forces reportedly placed Ahmed Saadat, head of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), under arrest for questioning about the assassination of Tourism Minister Rechavam Ze'evi, for which the PFLP took responsibility.

The Israeli government believes that Saadat masterminded Ze'evi's assassination, which occurred three months ago. Sharon has demanded that Arafat arrest Ze'evi's killers as well as Saadat or else remain confined to Ramallah indefinitely.

Israeli officials expressed skepticism about the arrest. "Until I see him behind bars, I won't believe it," Sharon spokesman Ra'anan Gissin said. "We've been disappointed so many times and fed up with so many announcements they've arrested someone."

Zinni had apparently asked Arafat to arrest Saadat and the two Palestinians suspected of killing Ze'evi. "To put off Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's efforts to block the resumption of negotiations and [attempt] to abort U.S. envoy Anthony Zinni's peace efforts, Arafat decided to arrest Saadat for interrogation," Arafat adviser Bassam Abu Sharif said. "The Americans will get knowledge of the interrogation first hand," although it was unclear whether a U.S. representative would be present during the questioning.

Arafat told representatives of the PFLP who came to demand Saadat's release that he would be the PA's "guest for two days," Ha'aretz reported.

The PA said that Arafat has also issued arrest orders for two suspects in the Karine A smuggling attempt who are currently abroad. Members of the committee set up by Arafat to investigate the affair were sent abroad to question deputy naval commander Fathi Razam and PLO member Adel Mugrabi, PA sources said, adding that Fuad Shubaki, head of the PA's armed forces finance department, had already been detained for questioning.

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