31.  As a base line, the talks that are under way have the emergence of a Palestinian state as their main working assumption, a senior administration official said.

32.  For an ailing Arafat, who wants to see a Palestinian state before he dies, that could be tempting.

33.  For his part, Arafat has been consistent in his declared goal of a Palestinian state with part of Jerusalem as its capital.

34.  For instance, Mrs. Clinton in 1998 endorsed the idea of a Palestinian state, a position not taken by the administration.

35.  For Israel to remain Jewish, we need a Palestinian state as well; otherwise we will have a binational state or a binational tragedy."

36.  For the Palestinian people, Arafat's failure has meant continued poverty and continued suffering, and the postponement of achieving their legitimate aim for a Palestinian state.

37.  For the first time, an American administration made the creation of a Palestinian state conditional on the removal of Arafat.

38.  For his part, Mubarak expressed hope that the opposition of Netanyahu and his party to a Palestinian state might prove to be no more than a temporary obstacle.

39.  For Moustafa Badr, 27, an architect in Cairo, the biggest issue is a Palestinian state.

40.  For starters, Siblani recommends greater U.S. action to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and to establish a Palestinian state.