Handed over to the Israeli and Palestinian prime ministers in Jerusalem and the West Bank yesterday, it provides three clear phases, target dates and benchmarks, the principles of which the White House says are non-negotiable.

It has the backing of a powerful “quartet” — the United States, United Nations, European Union and Russia — who agreed its contents last year. Built on UN Security Council resolutions, the principle of land for peace, previous peace deals and an initiative from Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, it presents painful challenges to both sides.

The plan is performance based, meaning that if either side slips, the 2005 target date for the creation of a Palestin-ian state could be delayed. Progress will be evaluated regularly by the quartet.

Phase 1 is to be completed by May this year. Its steps are not specifically choreographed, but they begin with the issuing of reciprocal statements supporting Israel’s right to exist in peace and security and a commitment to a sovereign Palestinian state. Both sides must also call for an immediate end to violence.

The Palestinians will have to make “visible efforts” to stop militant groups from attacking Israelis, by arresting their members, disrupting their activities and confiscating weapons.

The revamped Palestinian Authority will have to cut ties between its security authority and “terror and corruption”. An “empowered” interior minister is to control all Palestinian security organisations. Arab states must stop public and private funding of violent Palestinian groups. The two sides will resume security consultations to reduce the risk of suicide bombings. The Palestinians have to come up with a draft constitution to be debated in public and based on a strong parliamentary democracy. New election laws and bodies are then to be put in place, leading to free and fair elections.

The Israeli Government must end its blockade of Palestinian areas and must allow humanitarian organisations to move freely. It must not deport Palestinians, attack civilians, confiscate or demolish Palestinian homes or institutions. It has to withdraw its forces from areas entered since September 2000 and must dismantle Jewish settlements built in the West Bank and Gaza Strip since March 2001.

Phase 2 is to run from June to December 2004, but cannot start until after Palestinian elections. It aims to produce a provisional Palestinian state after an international conference convened by the quartet. It envisages further action on Jewish settlements, but does not specify them. Arab states must restore links with Israel, including trade offices.

In a further incentive to the Palestinians, the quartet will promote international recognition of their state, with possible UN membership.

Boldly titled “Permanent status agreement and end of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict”, Phase 3 runs from 2004 to 2005. The Israeli occupation of Palestinian areas that began in 1967 is due to end. An “agreed, just, fair and realistic” solution to the problem of Palestinian refugees is to be in the deal. The issue is particularly sensitive because of Israeli fears of being overwhelmed by the faster Palestinian birth-rate.

Jerusalem’s status will be decided, taking into account the concerns of both sides and religious interests worldwide. Arab states will open full relations with Israel, which will live side-by-side in peace and security with a “sovereign, independent, democratic and viable Palestine”.

• Israel has imprisoned 4,500 Palestinians in the past year, an Israeli military source said. He did not say how many had been freed or brought to trial. “Administrative detention”, or imprisonment without trial on security grounds for up to six months, ceased after the signing of interim peace accords in 1995 but has been revived since September 2000. The latest uprising has led to the deaths of 763 Israelis and 2,287 on the Palestinian side.

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