US Secretary of State Colin Powell has begun crucial talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon aimed at securing an immediate Israeli troop withdrawal in the West Bank. As the marathon three-hour meeting got under way the Israeli army acknowledged that its attack on the West Bank town of Jenin had caused many casualties. But the army corrected its earlier statement that hundreds of Palestinians had been killed in Jenin. It said hundreds had been wounded there, and the figure for those killed was closer to 100. Mr Sharon has ruled out any immediate halt to the Israeli army offensive in the West Bank - an operation he says is aimed at rooting out "terrorists".

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