Middle East Crisis Headlines – 1/10/2000
Middle East Crisis Headlines – 1/10/2000
There is confusion and uncertainty over the scheduled visit of US envoy Dennis Ross, casting a shadow over the latest US peace efforts. Israeli and US officials here say the visit is still on, despite Palestinian claims to the contrary. A senior Palestinian source told Reuters today that President Clinton and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat agreed in a late-night phone conversation to cancel the Ross visit. Israeli officials were surprised by the report. “This news has yet to reach the Prime Minister’s Office,” Israeli negotiator Gilead Sher toldIsrael Radio. “So as far as I know at this moment Dennis Ross is coming as planned tomorrow [Thursday] afternoon, will meet first the Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat and after that with Prime Minister Ehud Barak, all of it as planned.” A spokesman for the US embassy in Tel Aviv said he thought the visit is still on. If Ross does cancel, it would be a blow to President Clinton’s hopes for a breakthrough in the peace process before he leaves office. Official Israeli sources said the Palestinians seem to be sending Ross a message that he is not welcome.
The Palestinians leaked the word about Ross after rejecting the idea of a partial agreement or statement of principles with Israel before Clinton leaves office. Palestinian negotiator Yasser Abed Rabbo said Palestinians want a full peace treaty or nothing. “Peace cannot be declared, it must be achieved,” Abed Rabbo wrote in a two-page statement outlining the Palestinian negotiating position. He warned against agreements that require more negotiations and called for a treaty that ties up all loose ends, except for a few technical matters. Prime Minister Barak, on the other hand, is hoping for a declaration of principles, believing it would give a boost to his receding chances for reelection.
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat met with Israeli Cabinet Minister Amnon Lipkin-Shahak in Gaza overnight, as efforts continue to renew security cooperation between the sides. The chief of Israel’s Shin Bet secret service, Avi Dichter, was also present. The meeting was a follow up to talks on Sunday mediated by CIA chief George Tenet. The aim is to reduce Palestinian violence and terrorism, and create an atmosphere for continuing peace talks. The Palestinians, however, say they will not resume security cooperation until Israel lift its security closure on the autonomous areas, which effectively confines Palestinians to their cities and villages. Security cooperation, one of the cornerstones of the Oslo Accords, collapsed when the Palestinian uprising erupted over three months ago.
The violence has eased somewhat, even though Palestinian gunmen continue to attack Israeli army outposts and communities in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip each night. Last night, Israeli troops and Palestinian gunmen exchanged fire at Beit Sahur near Palestinian-ruled Bethlehem, and at the settlement of Netzarim in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army is also reeling from an embarrassing incident where troops opened fire on the car of the second-ranking Catholic prelate in the Holy Land. Bishop Boulos Marcuzzi, the Latin Patriarchal vicar for Israel, was traveling to visit a sick priest in the Palestinian village of Zababde in northern Samaria, when he was stopped at an Israeli checkpoint. The Bishop’s spokesman said the car was bearing the Vatican flag and diplomatic plates. He said the car slowed down but did not stop, and two soldiers ran out and fired three shots, one in the air and two close to the car. The car was not hit and no one was hurt. An army officer at a nearby camp apologized and escorted the clerics through the roadblock. The army said later that the soldiers did not act properly. The Church plans to file a formal complaint with the Israeli government.