Israelis call for State inquiry into massacre

Press, 27 September 1982, Page 1

Israelis call for State inquiry into massacre

NZPA-Reuter Tel Aviv

One of the biggest protest rallies seen in Israel has urged the Prime Minister, Mr Begin, to order a State inquiry into the Beirut massacre of Palestinians and then resign.

The mass demonstration in Tel Aviv’s Square of the Kings of Israel, called by the Labour-led Opposition and other moderate groups, also demanded an Israeli withdrawal from the Lebanese capital.

But a Government official said Israeli troops would quit the city only after clearing it of remaining Palestinian guerrillas. He estimated that this would take until the middle of this week.

The organisers of the rally said 350,000 people had taken part. The figure could not be checked, but Israel television said it was the biggest gathering seen in Tel Aviv’s main square.

The main speaker was the Labour leader, Mr Shimon Peres, who told his cheering supporters: "We are here to say no to Begin and (the Defence Minister. Mr Ariel) Sharon.”

Israel radio reported that a regimental commander had also urged Mr Sharon to resign. It did not name him.

Mr Peres assailed Israeli leaders for allowing Rightwing Lebanese militiamen into Palestinian camps in Beirut earlier this month, resulting in the slaughter of civilian, refugees:

“The people who took this miserable decision must not have the authority to take decisions in the future,” he said. “This, war must end immediately. The I.D.F. (Israel Defence Forces) must leave Beirut.”

The Opposition leader repeated demands for a statutory commission to be set up to investigate the massacre, something Mr Begin has strongly resisted. The Prime Minister came up with a compromise proposal last week under which the president of Israel’s Supreme Court would head an inquiry into the affair.

But this fell short of widespread demands for a probe under the terms of 1968 legislation that would empower a committee to subpoena witnesses, order- them to testify under oath and demand prosecution of those who fail to comply. In any case the Chief Justice said he could not take the job for the time being because two private applications for a full State inquiry were already before his court. The next move in the political and legal wrangle was expected to come at a Cabinet meeting scheduled for tomorrow.

In the Tel Aviv rally, Mr Victor Shemtov, a Labour member of the Knesset (Parliament), was loudly applauded when he said Mr Begin should assume full responsibility for the massacre and resign. The crowd was passive and well-organised and there were no serious incidents. Witnesses saw the police arresting several soldiers, including a paratrooper carrying an M-16 rifle, for taking part in the demonstration in uniform, an't illegal act in Israel.

As the rally was breaking up, the Foreign Ministry announced that the Israeli withdrawal from Beirut would be completed within a few days.

But a Government official told Reuters later that the troops would not pull out until they had cleared the city of Palestinian guerrillas. In answer to questions, he said: “We do not expect fighting or conflict, but we still have some things to clear up. This includes both the terrorists and armaments that are still in parts of west Beirut.

In New York protesters carrying coffins draped with Lebanese flags led 700 demonstrators through crowded Manhattan streets to protest at Israel’s invasion of Lebanon and last week’s massacre of Palestinians in Beirut. The demonstrators marched about 2km between the United Nations missions of Israel and the United States, causing rush hour traffic jams. Representatives of American Jewish groups joined peace activists and members of the Arab community in New York in the march organised by the national emergency committee on Lebanon.

In Rio de Janeiro, about 200 demonstrators, many of them of Arab descent, marched to the United States consulate to protest at the Palestinian massacre.

' The marchers, who carried banners accusing the United States of indirect responsibility for the slaughter, handed in a protest note calling for recognition of the Palestine Liberation Organisation. A group of about 100 Algerian students and some Palestinians attempted to march on the United States Embassy in Algiers but were violently beaten back by the police. '

NZPA-Reuter Beirut Israeli troops in west Beirut came under fire yesterday as their continuing occupation of key points in the Lebanese capital held up deployment of a three-nation Western peace force. Occasional explosions and bursts of automatic fire shook the . calm and three separate attacks on Israeli positions were reported. Security sources said that in one assault an Israeli soldier was shot in the leg while he was driving his car. In Washington, the Pentagon said that four United Nations military observers

were killed when their vehicle hit a mine east of Beirut. Two of the observers were American, one Finnish and one Irish. A second contingent of 350 French troops went ashore at Beirut port at the week-end to join the 350 who had arrived earlier as the vanguard of the multinational force. They have yet to begin their task. Diplomats said that they cannot perform that task, which consists of helping the largely untested Lebanese Army keep the peace in the capital, until the Israelis have completely withdrawn. The Israelis stormed into

west Beirut in the face of stiff resistance from Leftist guerrillas last week after the assassination of Presidentelect, Bashir Gemayel. The Israeli Government has agreed in principal to withdraw but details of the pull-out still appeared in dispute. The American Middle East envoy, Philip Habib, is currently discussing the issue with Israeli leaders. The other two countries providing troops for the force, the United States and Italy, have decided not to send their contingents ashore until the dispute is settled. Both the Americans and

Italians are reported to be on their way to Lebanon, and Italian ambassador. Franco Lucioli Ottieri, said that agreement might be reached in time for the Italians to arrive. Speaking to reporters at the dockside, he said he had been assured by the Lebanese authorities that the Israelis had dropped two demands — for continued access into west Beirut and a presence at the port. This would leave only the question of who is to control the airport, which is coccupied by Israeli forces. The 3000-man force is larger than an earlier force

the three nations provided to oversee the departure in August and at the start of this month of Palestinian guerrillas from west Beirut.

The Lebanese authorities asked the three countries to send back their troops after the Israeli take-over of west Beirut and the massacre of hundreds of Palestinian civilians by Lebanese Rightist militiamen. The new Lebanese President, Amin Gemayel. was reported to have drawn up a security plan under which “greater Beirut" would be controlled by a tripartite force answerable to a commission headed by him.