KK-Forum,
fra
http://www.mediamonitors.net/hanan7.html
Knut Rognes
************************************
The Tables Turned
by Hanan Ashrawi
Violence in
the Middle East has so far claimed the lives of over 325
people and
wounded over 11,000—most of them Israelis.
The
latest incidents took place in the early pre-dawn hours as
Palestinian
Defense Forces (PDF), in response to gunfire by Israeli
gunmen, shelled
the empty buildings in which the gunmen were taking
shelter. Five people were killed and twenty injured in the ensuing exchange
of fire.
Palestinian
President Yasser Arafat once again called on the Israelis
to “stop the
violence.” He once again pledged Palestine’s unwavering
commitment to peace and called on the
Israeli people to “stop their
acts of terrorism against Palestinian
civilians and PDF personnel.”
Deploying
“our Markaba tanks, our Apache and Cobra gun ships, and the
closure of
Israeli territories” are all “essential measures to
protect the
security of Palestine,” he added.
Praising the
“policy of restraint” practiced by the PDF, President
Arafat said that
if it took the “killing of two thousand more
Israelis” to put an end
to Jewish rioting and terror, he would do so.
In response
to the deteriorating economic conditions within the
Israeli territories,
Palestinian officials said that they would allow
ten thousand Israeli
workers to work in Palestine as a “good will
gesture.” To qualify for
permits, these Israeli workers must be
married, with several children, and
over 35 years old.
This latest
easing of the closure of the Israeli territories came in
response to the
European Union envoy’s appeals to Palestinian leaders
not to allow the
economy of Israel to collapse as a result of the
multiple closures. “The
entire European economic aid package to
Israel is being absorbed by these
closures,” the envoy said. Europe
has pledged an estimated US$ 500
million annually to help build up
the Israeli economy. The cost of the
closure is estimated at US$ 10
million per day.
Since the
beginning of the violence (or uprising, as some Israelis
call it),
unemployment has risen to 40% in Israel and over 30% of the
entire
population of Israel is now living below the poverty level.
Called upon
to release the funds that Palestine has refrained from
handing over to the
Israeli treasury as per the interim agreements
(VAT and excise tax), the Palestinian Minister of Finance said he would do
so “once the violence
subsides,” and after he deducts the amount owed
the Palestinian treasury
for hospital and other expenses.
At a
press conference held by the Palestine army spokesperson, and in
response
to questions concerning Palestine’s use of “excessive force”
in
quelling the riots, General Shati reiterated that the soldiers
have
“strict orders” not to shoot “unless their lives are
threatened.” PDF personnel are facing “life-threatening and dangerous
conditions”
and are acting strictly in “self defense.”
As for the
large number of Israeli children being killed (30% of the
total killed),
General Shati once again called on the Israeli
leadership not to “send
children into the line of fire” for the sake
of “scoring media
points.” “As you know,” he stated, “the Israelis do
not share the
same values that we have, and they do not have the same
feelings for their
children.” It is part of the Jewish culture to
“glorify martyrdom,”
and cynically sending their children out to die
provides the Israeli
leadership with a “cheap propaganda victory.”
The fact
that most injuries were in the head and the upper part of
the body is due
to the “skill of Palestinian snipers,” Shati
explained. These are
highly trained and skilled experts who know how
to stop “lethal
attacks” from “Jewish terrorists.” If there are any
“excesses,”
the PDF will carry out its own investigations. “Rest
assured, we will do
everything possible to investigate and to
discipline those responsible.”
He concluded, “You must remember, this
is a war situation. Our soldiers
are responding to stones, Molotov
cocktails, and live fire from the
Israeli rioters.”
In a meeting
with the visiting UN High Commissioner for Human Rights,
representatives
of Israeli human rights organizations and NGO’s
raised the issue of the Palestinian settlements on Israeli land occupied by
Palestine. They
claimed that Palestinian settlers had “stolen” their
lands to bring in
Muslims from other countries to live in housing
units subsidized by the Palestinian government. “Since the signing of the
Declaration of
Principles, settlement activity has doubled,” they
claimed. “Israeli
towns and villages on whose lands these settlements
were built are being threatened by these settlers with daily shootings,
abductions, torture and
killing of innocent civilians,” the Israeli
representatives claimed.
With the “bypass roads that the Palestinians
had constructed,” all
Israeli towns are isolated from each other and
their inhabitants have no
freedom of movement.
Expressing
“outrage” at the use of “excessive force” by the PDF, and
at the
violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention in the Palestinian
occupied
Israeli territories, the UN Commissioner issued a report
which included
the “incident” in which Palestinian settlers shot at
her car while
visiting the “shared” city of Modi’im.
In response,
the Palestinian Government spokesperson issued a
statement refuting the
Commissioner’s report while describing it as
“one-sided.” Palestine
has always applied the Convention “de facto”
in the disputed territories, the statement adds. Palestinian civilians have
every right to
live anywhere they want in historical Canaan, and the
PDF has the
responsibility of protecting them. The spokesperson
further stressed the
“emotional and spiritual attach ... ment” that
Muslims everywhere have for
this Waqf land as part of their heritage
and identity. The bypass roads
are essential for the security of
Palestinian and Muslim settlers who need
to travel freely in the
Israeli territory and to connect with Palestine without being attacked by
Israeli terrorists.
When asked
whether the uprooting of Israeli olive and fruit trees and
the bulldozing
of crops were necessary, the Palestinian spokesperson
responded that these
were used as “cover” by Israeli terrorists
throwing stones at Palestinian settlers and PDF vehicles traveling
throughout the Israeli
territories.
“Palestinian
civilians are being attacked by Jewish terrorists, and
the roads are no
longer safe in light of these latest riots,” he
stated. Restrictions on
the movement of Israelis have become a
security necessity, and curfews on
Israelis are essential,
particularly in shared cities, for the protection
of Palestinian
civilians. Haifa, for example, must remain calm, and for
the security
of the Palestinian population there and in order to guarantee
their
freedom of movement, all Jewish inhabitants of this city must remain
under curfew. “We allow them two hours of movement every few days to let
them do their shopping,” declared the spokesperson. “We do take into
account such humanitarian considerations.”
In the
Muslim neighborhood of Jala’, a suburb of West Jerusalem,
residents are
being subjected to gunfire from the Israeli town of
Beth Hassida. Fatima
Abed, 45 a school teacher and mother of six
children, had to be taken to
hospital for shock treatment when a
bullet struck the living room window
of her suburban home. The PDF
tanks stationed there had to shell the town of Beth Hassida in order to
silence the Israeli guns. “We will not tolerate any shooting or Israeli
threat to our eternal and undivided capital, Jerusalem,” the
spokesperson concluded.
Jerusalem,
however, remains an issue of contention. For security
reasons, Palestine
has closed off Jerusalem (both East and West) to
all Israelis, except for
those who are allowed to reside in the city
and who had been issued blue
identity cards by the Palestinian
authorities. Jewish holders of orange or
green ID cards are barred
entry, as well as all vehicles with blue or
green license
plates—“only yellow license plates are allowed to enter the area of greater
Jerusalem as designated by the Palestinian cabinet in
1967,” said the
spokesperson. Nevertheless, Jewish worshipers are
allowed to reach
the Wailing Wall during two major holidays provided they
are over 45
years old. “For security reasons,” however, “they have
to be bussed
in, and only in limited numbers.”
“Jerusalem
is open to all religions,” declared the Palestinian
minister in charge
of religious affairs. “We have a policy of 100%
religious tolerance and
we respect the right to worship freely at all
holy sites.” In response
to a question on the closure imposed on
Jerusalem since 1993 and the
prevention of Jewish Israelis from
entering the city, the minister
responded: “This is only a temporary
security measure. The whole world
understands that we are living in
exceptional circumstances that require
drastic measures.”
“These are
the same ‘drastic measures’ that are used by the
Palestinians to
demolish Jewish homes, to confiscate Israeli
Jerusalem ID’s, to
expropriate Israeli land on which to build
Palestinian settlements, and to
ban Jewish Israelis from building on
their own land,” claimed an Israeli
resident of Jerusalem. “First,
they declare our land as ‘green
areas’, then they refuse to grant us
building permits on the 12%
that’s left to us, then—before you know
it—Palestinian settlements
are mushrooming everywhere, around and
within our city. We cannot move
freely in our own city,” he added.
The Palestine government, however,
maintains its position that it can
build anywhere in its capital. “We
have even built housing projects
for Jews,” claimed the Palestinian minister of housing and construction,
himself a Hamas member of Arafat’s
coalition government.
In yet
another development, Palestinian President Arafat has issued
orders for
the assassination of all Israeli leaders of “terrorist”
organizations,
including Shas, the Mifdal, the Likud, and the Hagana
militias of Chairman Barak’s own Labor party. In a moving speech before the
inner (security)
cabinet, President Arafat vehemently declared
zero-tolerance for the
“revolving door policy” of chairman Barak. “We
have repeatedly told
him to arrest them and keep them in prison. By
releasing them, Chairman
Barak is giving a green light to terrorism
against the Palestinian people.
Our cities will be targets for
despicable and vicious attacks by Jewish fundamentalists who are opposed to
the peace process. If Barak is to live
up to his commitment to peace,
he must prove that he can safeguard the
security of all Palestinian
citizens anywhere in Palestine and the territories.”
In a related
move, the PDF Coordinator has issued orders canceling
all the passes and
privileges granted members of the Israeli
Authority. Previously, the
“VIP status” granted such Israeli
individuals afforded them freedom of
movement among Israeli towns and
cities without being stopped and searched
at Palestinian army
checkpoints—a routine measure for all Israelis
allowed to move within
the territories. “We had issued around 200 of
these VIP passes,” the
Coordinator stated. “Instead of being grateful,
members of the
Israeli Authority are not living up to their
commitments—they are not
controlling the people or reigning in the
Israeli rioters.” Once they
stop the violence, the Coordinator promised,
they would regain their
privileges.
When asked
about the missile that killed a Labor militia leader and
two middle-aged
Israeli women who had been in the street in front of
their homes,
President Arafat praised the “precision” of the attack
and described
it as a “surgical strike.” “It was a necessary and
successful operation,” he boasted. These terrorists must learn that they
will not
be safe anywhere.” In the meantime, opposition leader,
Sheikh Ahmad
Yassin, called on President Arafat to arrest and deport
all Israeli
leaders and added that Colonel Amram of the Israeli
Preventive Security
must himself be assassinated on suspicion of
involvement in the latest
attacks on the PDF. President Arafat
refused to comment, saying it is
enough to “take out” the Israeli
activist leadership. “We shall
study the situation and take further
measures as necessary,” he added,” thereby keeping the door open for
further bargaining with Hamas
in the looming parliamentary crisis in
Palestine.
Aware of the
implications of this latest political crisis in
Palestine, and in a bid to
help President Arafat overcome the
challenge of his rival, Yassin, US
President Clinton gave an
interview to Palestine television praising President Arafat for his
“flexibility and generosity” in the Camp
David talks and laying the
blame for their failure squarely on Chairman
Barak.
“Arafat
went further than any other Palestinian leader” in offering
the Israelis
functional responsibility and personal jurisdiction in
the Israeli part of
Jerusalem. “He also expressed willingness to
allow Barak to raise the
Israeli flag on the Holy Synagogue,” Clinton
added. Describing the issue
as “largely symbolic,” Clinton asserted
that “symbolic solutions”
could be found. As for Palestinian
settlements in Israeli territory, these
could be grouped into
settlement blocs and annexed to Palestine. UN resolution 242 does not mean
the inadmissibility of acquisition of
territory by war, he explained.
Some territory may be annexed to
Palestine, for Palestinian settlers
must be able to live under Palestinian sovereignty--at least 80% of them.
As for the Jewish refugees who had left
more than 50 years ago, they
can be “generously compensated” and
relocated elsewhere. Clinton
concurred with the Palestinian view that the Muslim-Christian character of
Palestine must be maintained, and that the
Israelis must be
“realistic” in their demands. “Chairman Barak must
go further in
meeting President Arafat’s flexibility,” he added.
Pledging to
continue American foreign assistance to Palestine,
Clinton promised to
raise the US$ 3 billion granted to Palestine
annually, while allocating a
further US$ 800 million to maintain
Palestine’s strategic military superiority in the region and to fund
Palestinian withdrawal from some of
the Israeli territories. “We
share more than funds and military
secrets,” Clinton declared. The
Muslim-Christian tradition and ethos
supply us with “values of
democracy and human rights and we are proud to
call Palestine (the
only democracy in the region) our special ally.”
In a
reciprocal move, President Arafat promised that he would call on
the
Muslim and Palestinian-American business community to be even
more
generous with their campaign funds and votes in the upcoming
American election.
While in the
US, President Arafat called on Secretary of State
Madeleine Albright and
thanked her for her identification with
Palestinian suffering. “I
appreciate all your efforts on behalf of
peace and democracy,” she responded. Later in the day, Albright went on
national American television
admonishing the Israelis for their
“violence” and explaining how
Palestine is “under siege” by the
Israelis, particularly “those
stone throwers.” She further promised
to veto any draft UN resolution
aiming to censure Palestine for its
policies and measures in the Israeli
territories.
On his way
back to Jerusalem, President Arafat made a brief stop at
the UN to meet
with Secretary General Kofi Anan. Mr. Anan asked for a
role in the peace
process, promising to maintain “neutrality” and not
to be identified with any Israeli if Palestine and the US would allow him
to join the
membership of the peace club. President Arafat promised
to think about it.
President
Arafat’s last stop was in Europe to meet with the EU
presidency. They
made the same request. He gave them the same reply.
In the
meantime, violence continues in the territories and many
Israelis find
themselves caught in the crossfire.
President
Arafat remains committed to peace despite his grave
disappointment with
Chairman Barak’s inability to control his people
or to appreciate the
“generous offer” presented at Camp David. “I
will leave no stone
unturned in my search for peace,” he declared. In
an unprecedented move,
he openly avowed to recognize an “Israeli
state” on 50% of Israeli
territory, provided he can immediately annex
the Palestinian settlement
clusters and maintain security control
over the borders of the demilitarized Israeli entity. Jerusalem will remain
under “full
Palestinian sovereignty,” Arafat affirmed, adding that he
will entertain
giving the Israelis responsibility over a Jewish holy
site.
Whether that
will be enough to “clinch a deal” and to save Arafat’s
political
career remains to be seen. President Clinton’s peace team
sounded upbeat
in their assessment of the chances for resuming talks.
On a family visit
during Id Al-Fitr Holiday, Dennis Ross made a point
of holding talks with
both leaders. “It is up to Chairman Barak now
to reciprocate the good
will gestures of President Arafat,” he
declared. “The ball is in his
court.”
In
Washington, President Clinton declared himself satisfied with the
progress
made so far. “We can clinch this by January 20, 2001,” he
announced
(in a veiled reference to his end-of-term date). “President
Arafat has a
political career to save; I have a historical legacy to
make; and Chairman
Barak must show proper appreciation of this
unprecedented opportunity.”
In the
Occupied Israeli Territories, the uprising leadership issued a
leaflet
denouncing the resumption of talks while Jews were being
“massacred”
daily at the hands of the Palestine Defense Forces.
Next
Tuesday, however, and despite Israeli extremist statements,
Palestinian
and Israeli teams will dutifully head to Washington for
“exploratory”
talks. The interpreter to the US special envoy to
Middle East Peace Process declared himself “satisfied.” The Israelis will
easily
“swap” the Jewish refugees right of return for responsibility
over the
Holy Synagogue. For good measure, “we’ll throw in the Jewish
Quarter
and a neighborhood or two,” he added in an optimistic tone.
“Chairman
Barak must show real leadership,” a senior state department
official
said on condition of anonymity. “He must recalibrate,” he
added.
“The Israelis never miss an opportunity to miss an
opportunity. They
cannot afford to miss this one.” Another official
promised to strengthen
Barak’s security forces to quell any protests
among the Israelis in the
face of rising anger. “This comes out of
our commitment to peace and
democracy,” she said anonymously.
“Palestine deserves peace and security at all costs.” Should the Israelis
prove difficult, then they
are not worthy of democracy and must be
made to comply. “It’s the
least we can do,” she added. “We can help
Chairman Barak reactivate
and expand his [military] State Security
Courts (as promised by Vice President Gore), and we will increase our
participation in the Security
Committees while upgrading the
Anti-Incitement Committee. After all, the
security of Palestine is at
stake, and Palestine is no ordinary ally.” What more could the Israelis
hope for?
The horror!
The horror!
Source:
by courtesy & © 2000 MIFTAH
by the same author:
Hadeel's Song (Poem)
Anatomy
of Racism
Letter
to President Clinton
The
Barak Government's "White Paper"
Barak's
Political Exports: Used Goods to Arafat & A Snub to Clinton
Barak's
Resignation and the Palestinian Dimension
****************************
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu Jan 18 2001 - 10:59:39 MET