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Powell: Palestinians must stop terror

WASHINGTON, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Palestinian officials must "wrest authority" from Yasser Arafat before Middle East peace can be expected, Secretary of State Colin Powell said Thursday.

In a wide-ranging press conference in which he claimed a number of foreign policy successes for the Bush administration, the secretary singled out the Middle East as an area of "special challenge."

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"What we need is ... more responsible action on the part of the Palestinian Authority in order to bring terrorism under control" and end violence, Powell said. "And then I think the road map ... can provide us with the way forward."

Powell rejected the idea of a single state made up of Israel and the disputed territories west of the Jordan River.

"We're committed to a two-state solution," Powell said.

He said Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon "is looking for a reliable (peace) partner he can work with," and Washington is trying "to get that reliable partner to stand up and start acting."

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