Camp visit sparks storm
NZPA-AAP Jerusalem The Australian Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr Bill Hayden, yesterday appeared to have started a big diplomatic storm when he visited the Kalandia Palestinian refugee camp on the West Bank. Foreign Affairs officials said that Mr Hayden was the most senior foreign dignitary to visit the camps, where tension between the Palestinians . and Israeli soldiers patrolling nearby often runs high. Stone-throwing incidents
are common when Israeli soldiers patrol too close to the camp’s perimeters. Mr Hayden was taken on the tour by officials of the United Nations Works and Relief Agency, which runs the camps, and it was billed as a private visit. The officials said they had emphasised they wanted low-key security arrangements for Mr Hayden’s camp tour so his party was split into two groups because of fears that one large party could provoke tensions.
The agency said it had told the Israeli military that the level of security provided by them should only consist of one jeep following the United Nations convoy carrying the Minister at a discreet distance, as well as some military presence at the camp entrance. However, when Mr Hayden entered the camp, there was a military vehicle carrying armed soldiers, soldiers stationed on the road and others placed on roofs of tall buildings. The agency’s director on
the West Bank, Roy Skinner, was heard to say that he intended making an official complaint about the level of Israeli security. He was responsible for organising Mr Hayden’s security during the tour and when asked whether the Israeli military presence was unnecessary, he said: “Yes.” The Israeli Government was understood to have indicated that it was upset by Mr Hayden’s personal interest in the Palestinian question.
Permanent link to this item
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19840130.2.73.3
Bibliographic details
Press, 30 January 1984, Page 10
Word Count
286Camp visit sparks storm Press, 30 January 1984, Page 10
Using This Item
Stuff Ltd is the copyright owner for the Press. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 New Zealand licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Stuff Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.
Copyright in all Footrot Flats cartoons is owned by Diogenes Designs Ltd. The National Library has been granted permission to digitise these cartoons and make them available online as part of this digitised version of the Press. You can search, browse, and print Footrot Flats cartoons for research and personal study only. Permission must be obtained from Diogenes Designs Ltd for any other use.
Acknowledgements
This newspaper was digitised in partnership with Christchurch City Libraries.