Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said Friday that there would be no general elections until after the end of Israel's military occupation. A senior Arafat aide, Ahmed Abdel Rahman, had said Thursday that the Palestinian leader agreed to hold presidential and parliamentary elections within six months. There was no immediate explanation for the differing statements.
A Palestinian parliament committee demanded Thursday that general elections be held within a year as part of a package of reforms to overhaul Yasser Arafat 's Palestinian Authority, legislators said.

The legislators also called on Arafat to appoint a new Cabinet within 45 days. There was no immediate comment from the Palestinian leader, who told parliament on Wednesday he was open to change, but gave few specifics.

The list of demands was drafted by a committee of eight legislators, and was to be presented to the full parliament for approval in the coming days, said lawmaker Ziad Abu Amr, who expected smooth passage.

PHOTO CAPTION
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat talks to members of the Palestinian legeslative council during a speech to mark the "Naqba Day", or Catastrophe Day, the anniversary of the Palestinian uprooting as a result of Israel's creation in 1948, in the West Bank town of Ramallah in this Wednesday May 15, 2002 photo. Arafat is calling for presidential and parliamentary elections for his Palestinian Authority within six months. (AP Photo/ Palestinian Authority, Hussein Hussein/HO)