more good news
US source: Right of return cannot be negated
Washington committed to democratic Lebanese presidential elections
By Zeina Abu Rizk
Special to The Daily Star
Thursday, April 22, 2004
Compared to US President George W. Bush's worrying support last week for Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's so-called "disengagement" plan, what a diplomatic source close to US circles had to say on Wednesday on this very same topic sounded much more reassuring: Washington, the source asserted, remains committed to the road map and to Bush's June 2004 speech in which he outlined his view of peace in the Middle East.
The US is dedicated to a two-state solution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and for the return of Palestinian refugees to their future homeland - the new Palestine, not the future Israel.
On this basis, any consideration of the "no one can negate the (Palestinians') right of return," comment made by the US president "should be put in this perspective," the source noted.
In the meantime, Washington believes that efforts must be deployed to strengthen the Palestinian Authority while "isolating" Hamas - the Palestinian resistance perceived by the US as a main threat to peace plans. In the context of this policy, Washington asked US officials here to convey to the Lebanese authorities a clear message that it wanted Lebanon to "cease its support for Hamas."
Over the past week, US diplomats have been meeting with Lebanese officials for this purpose. They still have not obtained any answer to this US demand - a demand that came in line with a similar request made last year by Washington to Damascus.
On a different level, the source asserted that the postponed US sanctions against Syria were "still coming," and will be implemented "within weeks at the most." Called for by the Syrian Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Law passed a few months ago by Washington, these sanctions were only delayed due to the prevailing circumstances, not as a result of any kind of improvement on the US-Syrian track, the source asserted.
The issue of the US sanctions against Damascus, along with other items included in the Syrian accountability law - such as the Syrian presence here - are part of the ongoing dialogue between Washington and Damascus and could therefore surface at any moment.
As for the next presidential election in Lebanon, Washington remains committed to its stand, expressed by US Head of National Security Condoleezza Rice, that these elections should take place in a democratic spirit and reflect the Lebanese will. There will be no further US positions in this regard, the source asserted.
Undoubtedly, comments made by Bush last week after his meeting with Sharon in Washington continued to hold politicians' attention. The source said that these comments had actually provoked a lot of "misperceptions," insisting that they should be placed in their right context.
Bush approved of Sharon's disengagement plan, which includes the building of a security barrier that Israel says will block Palestinians from attacking Israel from the West Bank. He also agreed on Sharon's idea to have this barrier - already under construction - include part of the Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
The source said this particular part of Sharon's plan would only be implemented if the Palestinians agree on it, in the context of negotiations between the two parties. Such a step could be possible in the framework of a land swap or any other kind of political compromises between them. In any case, the source said, it is not up to the US to decide on behalf of the Palestinians what they need to give in: "Concessions can only be given by the Palestinians themselves."
Sharon's disengagement plan also includes a provision for Israel to pull out all Jewish settlements and troops from Gaza - a first for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that should be encouraged, the source said, and which Washington considers as a major achievement and is therefore committed to supporting it.
Explaining Bush's lack of support to the Palestinian demand for the so-called right of return, as he said, the source said that what the president meant was that such return should not be to the 1967 border - that is to Israel in its present configuration - but to the Palestinian state-to-be. But one thing is for sure: "No one can negate the right to return," the source said.
Asked where the US stands on Israel's assassination of two Hamas leaders in less than a month, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and Abdul Aziz Rantissi, the source said Israel does not ask for the United States' blessing to undertake such acts. As far as Washington is concerned: "Israel has the right to self-defense when faced with a terrible threat such as terrorism."
After Sept. 11, 2001, the US also has been pursuing terrorism, which is why it is hard
for Washington to blame or condemn such acts, the source explained.
Asked whether the US considers it legal for Israel to take part in the killing of Hamas
leaders in other countries,
the source remained evasive. Sharon had promised to kill the head of Hamas' politburo in Damascus, Khaled Mashaal. "Yes, this would constitute a violation of sovereignty, since it involves border crossing. But no, there will be no statement on the US' part condemning such initiatives," the source said.
As to whether or not such acts may extend to Hizbullah leaders in Lebanon, the source seemed to believe that anything is possible in this respect.
One thing is for sure: Washington is concerned about what it describes as Hizbullah's full support for Hamas and also about what the source referred to as Lebanese officials' "rhetorical support" for the Palestinian resistance.
Two weeks ago the American Embassy received clear instructions from Washington to ask that the Lebanese government cease its support for Hamas, the source said. This was the case last year when US Secretary of State Colin Powell visited Syrian President Bashar Assad and asked that Syria stop supporting and protecting Hamas' organization in Damascus. At that time, Powell also asked for the expulsion of Hamas leaders to any country except Lebanon, the source added. What happened since was the exact
opposite. Over the past year, Mashaal has been moving freely from Syria to Lebanon, meeting with Hizbullah and Palestinian officials here and reinforcing cooperation with Hamas.
Another thing the US was particularly annoyed with was the rally organized by Hizbullah and Hamas in Beirut after the killing of Sheikh Yassin, "in the presence of Cabinet members," the source said.
According to Washington, the Lebanese resistance has also become much more active over this past period in Gaza and the West Bank, encouraging and directing "terrorist activities" - as put by the source, and paying militants millions to achieve such operations.
For all these reasons, the US is determined to have the Lebanese government cooperate on the Hamas file, but has still not received any Lebanese response in this respect.
As to the Syrian-US file, the source asserted that sanctions were delayed due to the series of events that happened over the past two months, with the assassination of Yassin, the postponement of the Arab summit that was scheduled at the end of March, the resurgence of violence in Iraq and more recently, the repercussions of Sharon's visit to Washington and the assassination of Rantissi.
The US remains extremely concerned, however, about infiltrations on the border between Syria and Iraq. Although Damascus has reinforced security measures along this border, these are still insufficient. Powell's demand for Syria to deploy more Syrian soldiers along the border has still not received an answer.
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