RAMALLAH, June 23: Egypt gave Yasser Arafat two months to make good on promises of reform if Cairo is to help Palestinians keep order in Gaza after an Israeli pullout, officials said on Wednesday.

The deadline was delivered by Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman at a meeting in the veteran Palestinian leader's battered West Bank headquarters. An Egyptian presence could help prevent a collapse into factional anarchy or a militant takeover of the Gaza Strip if Israel goes ahead with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's US-backed plan to withdraw troops and settlers.

Sharon welcomes Egyptian involvement but said on Wednesday he would not allow them to mediate between Israel and the Palestinians. Egypt is also trying to broker a total ceasefire, but Israel has said it is not ready to agree.

The Egyptian help depends on Palestinian security reforms that would mean Arafat ceding some powers as well as on agreement from armed factions wary of Cairo's role in a territory held by Egypt until the 1967 war.

"We have two months to issue decisions, make necessary security reforms and security appointments and advance the dialogue between factions," Prime Minister Ahmed said. Suleiman told reporters that Egyptian experts could be in Gaza "within months" and said he emerged "very much satisfied" from his talks with Arafat.

Egypt, ready to send up to 200 experts to Gaza, has not said what it will do if reforms fail. Arafat resisted previous calls for change, but on Wednesday welcomed the Egyptian offer.

"Arafat has given promises but has not taken any action on the ground," said one Palestinian official. Having ruled out negotiations with the Palestinians for now, Sharon emphasized on Wednesday that he would not let Egypt restart talks through the back door. -Reutrers