The Israeli and Palestinian prime ministers have agreed to hold a long-delayed summit next Tuesday, their first meeting since the Palestinian leader took office in October, Israeli and Palestinian officials said yesterday.

　　The summit will address several issues including a proposed Israeli pullout from Gaza and efforts to restart the US-backed "road map" peace plan, senior officials from both sides said.

　　Also yesterday, Israeli undercover units killed five Palestinian militants in an apparent pinpoint attack in the West Bank town of Jenin, Palestinians said.

　　The militants were members of the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a militia linked to Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, the officials said.

　　The date of next week's summit remained unclear. A senior Palestinian official speaking on condition of anonymity said the summit date was set for Tuesday.

　　However, Hassan Abu Libdeh, an adviser to Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia, said the date was not definite and will depend on the outcome of a preparatory meeting Sunday between the leaders' aides.

　　"We are discussing various issues and if we agree on these issues then there will be no obstacles to a meeting," Abu Libdeh said.

　　Israeli media reported the main topic at the summit would be Sharon's plan to unilaterally withdraw from the Gaza Strip, a proposal that could include the removal of most Jewish settlements in the coastal area.

　　But ahead of the pullout, both sides tried to rally Egyptian support for a favorable role in Gaza. Egypt was noncommittal, however, saying it has no intention of policing the volatile area.

　　Egypt's intelligence chief, Omar Suleiman, went to the West Bank yesterday for talks with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. Suleiman met secretly on Monday with the Israeli prime minister, officials in Sharon's office said on condition of anonymity.

　　(The Associated Press)