Gangsterism?
January 31, 2002
Sharon Regrets Arafat Not 'Eliminated' in 1982
By REUTERS
Filed at 3:11 p.m. ET
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said in an interview on Thursday Israel
should have killed Yasser Arafat in 1982 when it had the Palestinian leader under siege in
Beirut.
Sharon's comments underlined the depth of animosity between himself and Arafat after 16
months of violence and pushed the prospects of their holding peace talks even further back.
Recriminations over Sharon's remarks and an incident in which Israeli troops killed two
Palestinian gunmen in the Gaza Strip overshadowed international efforts to persuade the United
States to resume high-level mediation in the conflict.
But in a new sign of attempts to secure a truce, Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said he
expected to meet Palestinian parliamentary speaker Ahmed Korei on the sidelines of the World
Economic Forum in New York later on Thursday.
``The prime minister knows I am going to meet himand knows what I will speak to him about,''
Peres told Israel's Channel One television in an interview.
Previous meetings between the two architects of interim Middle East peace deals have failed to
stem the bloodshed, and Sharon has previously given Peres a limited mandate.
Sharon blames Arafat for failing to rein in militant groups during the 16-month-old uprising
against Israeli occupation. Arafat accuses Sharon of blocking peace, and his aides say the
Israeli leader has a vendetta to remove Arafat from the scene.
Their animosity goes back decades, to when Arafat was in Lebanon during Israel's invasion in
1982.
``In Lebanon it was agreed that Arafat would not be eliminated. To tell the truth, I'm sorry we
didn't eliminate him,'' Sharon told the Israeli newspaper Maariv.
SHARON, ARAFAT LONG-TIME FOES
Sharon directed the invasion of Lebanon as defense minister, sending tanks and troops to the
outskirts of Beirut where they bottled up Arafat and his PLO fighters before an internationally
brokered deal led to the Palestinians' evacuation by sea.
His remarks were condemned by Palestinian officials.
``I think this reflects what has been always said -- that Sharon is trying to finish what he began
in 1982,'' cabinet member Saeb Erekat said. ``And for prime ministers to announce openly their
gangster intentions is a reflection of what kind of government we're dealing with.''
Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Pique, whose country holds the European Union presidency,
said he had not seen Sharon's remarks but that, if confirmed, ``they deserve our rejection.''
Government spokesman Raanan Gissin said Israel had no plans to oust or kill Arafat, although
the army has confined Arafat to his headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
VIOLENCE IN GAZA STRIP
Fresh violence erupted shortly before Middle East envoys from the United Nations, the
European Union and Russia were due to meet U.S. officials in Washington to discuss the
conflict.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder called for more pressure on Arafat before meeting
President Bush in Washington.
Arafat says his ability to rein in militant groups is limited by Israeli raids and shootings which
fuel anger.
Earlier on Thursday, Israeli forces killed two Palestinian gunmen from the Islamic militant
group Hamas who ambushed a convoy headed for a Jewish settlement in the Gaza Strip.
Shortly after the attack, mortar shells hit a settlement in the Gush Katif bloc, injuring one
Israeli. Palestinian witnesses said Israeli forces entered the nearby Khan Younis refugee camp
and detained 10 Palestinians at a Gaza Strip checkpoint.
Israeli forces entered a Palestinian Authority office in the West Bank town of el-Eizariyeh,
confiscating documents and smashing furniture, Palestinian security officials said. The army
said the building was illegally used by Palestinian security services.
At least 826 Palestinians and 249 Israelis have been killed in the uprising that began in
September 2000. |
