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Israel firm on Arafat's removal
http://www.sina.com.cn 2003/09/15 13:06  Shanghai Daily

  Over strong US objections, Israel insisted yes-terday it will remove Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as an obstacle to peace, and one Cabinet minister said Israelòdoesn?t take ordersófrom Washington.

  Israeli leaders, how-ever, left their statements intentionally vague and put off immediate action to avoid a direct clash with the United States.

  Israel appeared to pull back from any immed-iate operation, and yesterday left lookout positions on top floors of two buildings over-looking Arafat?s compound.

  The 74-year-old Pales-tinian leader was defiant, declaring before thousands of supporters on Thursday night that no one willòkick me out.óThe Israeli threats only seemed to bolster Arafat, who has been trap-ped in his office for 18 months by Israel.

  Again yesterday, crowds of a few thousand people turned out in West Bank cities promising to defend Arafat with their own lives.

  Reacting to two Palest-inian suicide bombings that killed 15 Israelis this week in a Jerusalem cafe and outside an army base near Tel Aviv, Israel?s security Cabinet on Thursday declared Arafatòa complete obstacleóto peace, blaming him for the violence, and added,òIsrael will work to remove this obstacle in the manner, at the time, and in the ways that will be decided on separ-ately.ó That wording makes room for several options: deporting Arafat, capturing him or killing him. The Haaretz daily, however, reported that when Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz talked of killing Arafat during the Cabinet meeting, Sharon asked him not to use that language.

  On Thursday, US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher reiterated the long-standing US view, saying,òWe think that it would not be helpful to expel (Arafat) because it would just give him another stage to play on.

  In Ramallah, Arafat appeared at the doorway of his sandbagged office building at his head-quarters complex that was all but destroyed by Israeli tank fire and bull-dozers.

  Carried aloft by body-guards, Arafat grinned broadly and flashedòV for victoryósigns with his fingers at thousands of backers who rushed to the headquarters to protect him from what they feared would be an immediate Israeli move to seize him.

  òWe will die and you will live, old man,óthe crowd chanted.

  Using a bullhorn, Arafat recited a passage from the Quran, the Muslim holy book, about being steadfast in the face of an oppressor. He also said:òMy brothers, my loved ones, this round (of fighting) that the brave peoples are living through tells the world that this people is not afraid and will not kneel.ó In Jerusalem yesterday, Israeli police stormed a disputed holy site, firing tear gas and stun grenades to disperse hundreds of Mus-lim worshipers who threw stones after noon prayers.




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