¡¡¡¡More than 30 top Palestinlan leaders from the occupied territories said Monday the PLO must be involved in IsraeliPalestinian peace talks, a move Israel has consistently opposed.

¡¡¡¡A statement by the Palestinians was released as Israeli leaders continued to be deadlocked over accepting U.S.backed compromises aimed at getting preliminary peace talksunder way.

¡¡¡¡The hardened stance by the Palestinian leaders lessens the chances of Israel accepting such compromises, which were aimed partly at avoiding even the appearance of PLO involvement to meet Israeli demands.

¡¡¡¡Israel's right-wing Likud bloc, headed by Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, has resisted proposals by U.S. Secretary of State James Baker to include residents of Arab east Jerusalem and two people deported by Israel among the Palestinian negotiators.

¡¡¡¡Party hardliners fear such moves would allow indirect participation by the PLO, which Is rael considers a terrorist organ ization.

¡¡¡¡The statement by 34 Pales tinian leaders from the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip was circulated in Jerusalem and the West Bank.

¡¡¡¡It called for "the immediate opening, without pre-con ditions, of a alestinian-lsraeli dialogue" and chided the Israeli government for "placing obsta cles in the way of any effort to move the peace process forward."

¡¡¡¡But it also repeated the Palestinians' demand that the PLO represent them in the talks

¡¡¡¡"The PLO alone has the right both to form and to announce any Palestinian del. egation to the peace dialogue,'the statement said.