TEL AVIV, Nov 7: Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is coming under increasing pressure, especially from army top brass, to resume talks with Mahmud Abbas , who is set to be the key Palestinian player in the post-Arafat era.

According to Israeli media, military officials want Sharon to make goodwill gestures to help Abbas and current Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei solidify their grip on power and keep the Palestinian territories from plunging into chaos.

"There is now an opportunity to be seized. They cannot let it slip through their fingers a second time," a senior Israeli foreign ministry official said on condition of anonymity.

The official was referring to Sharon's refusal to make any significant concessions to Abbas during his brief stint as Palestinian premier last year.

Abbas, better known by his nom de guerre Abu Mazen, resigned after four months in office, due to his failure to persuade Yasser Arafat to cede control of the Palestinian security services, and the political stalemate with Sharon.

In July, well before Arafat fell gravely ill and was evacuated to France for urgent medical treatment, Israeli army chief of staff Moshe Yaalon launched a thinly veiled criticism of Sharon's intransigence vis-a-vis the moderate Abbas.

Several commentators noted that had Sharon presented his plan to withdraw unilaterally from the Gaza Strip while Abbas was still in office, it might have strengthened the then Palestinian premier's position.

"To help Abu Mazen, the government must make concessions, like refraining from launching military operations in the Palestinian territories or (by) lifting roadblocks to facilitate the movement of the Palestinians," said Shlomo Brom, a researcher at Tel Aviv University's Jaffe Center for Strategic Studies.

"But such a policy could help those who want to stage attacks. The question is: to what extent political and military officials are willing to take risks?" noted Brom, the former head of the army's strategic planning division.

If Sharon does extend an olive branch to Abbas and Qorei, such a policy would have repercussions for the Israeli prime minister's plan to withdraw all troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip by the end of next year.

"It's obvious that dialogue with the new Palestinian leaders on the transfer of powers (in Gaza) would send a strong message," Brom said.

Sharon has until now refused to negotiate on any aspects of his Gaza evacuation plan, saying it would be applied unilaterally as he did not have a viable Palestinian negotiating partner in Arafat.

But with the veteran Palestinian leader fighting for his life in a French military hospital, Sharon's reasoning is no longer valid, analysts said.

Last Sunday, Sharon took a tentative first step towards renewing dialogue.

"If a new Palestinian leadership which is both serious and responsible emerges, it is possible that there can be a resumption of negotiations on the roadmap" peace plan, he was quoted as telling a weekly cabinet meeting.

But Sharon warned that any such talks were dependent on a crackdown on armed Palestinian groups, saying: "A new leadership must prove by its actions that it is fighting against terrorism."

The Israeli prime minister's more moderate tone can be explained by his willingness to keep the United States on his side.

"Israel wants to make a show of goodwill to President George W. Bush's new administration," the Israeli foreign ministry official said.

Abbas quickly earned Bush's favour during his brief tenure as prime minister, travelling to the White House for talks and meeting the US president at June 2003 summits in Egypt and Jordan.

In contrast, Bush, who last week won a second term in office, has systematically refused to negotiate with Arafat during his four years in Washington

THREE KILLED: Three Palestinians were shot dead in their car on Sunday by undercover Israeli forces in the northern West Bank town of Jenin, Palestinian medical and security sources said.-AFP