Palestinians ‘left out in cold’

Press, 12 November 1985, Page 17

Palestinians ‘left out in cold’

From

ROBIN LUSTIG,

in Jerusalem

Palestinian leaders on the Israeli-occupied West Bank are increasingly worried that they may be shut out of any peace talks resulting from the diplomatic manoeuvres by Israel and Jordan. In spite of repeated assurance from King Hussein that he believes the Palestinian Liberation Organisation must remain a part of any new peace initiative, Palestinian leaders living under Israeli occupation fear that the failure of the London talks last month between a joint Jordanian-Palestinian delegation and Sir Geoffrey Howe, the British Foreign Secretary, may have spelt the end of co-operation between Amman and the P.L.O.

“Egypt is now the P.L.O.’s only remaining ally,” says one West Bank Palestinian with close ties to the P.L.O. “If Hussein could get Egypt’s agreement, he would go all out for talks with Israel excluding the P.L.0.” The level of Palestinian concern was shown by the recent decision of two prominent West Bankers to drive across the River Jordan to Amman to assess the latest situation — Elias Freij, the moderate, non-P.L.O. Mayor of Bethlehem, and Hanna Seniora, editor of the pro-P.L.O. East Jerusalem newspaper “Al Fajr.” In separate interviews, Freij and Seniora both described the Lbndon fiasco as a grave error. “It severely damaged the P.L.O.’s

credibility in the West and will have far deeper repercussions than the hijack of the Achille Lauro,” Freij said. Seniora, who has been named as a Palestinian member of a proposed Jordanian-Palestinian delegation to meet United States officials if the “peace process” ever gets off the ground, said the cancellation of the London talks was the “most serious of the misunderstandings between Jordan and the P.L.0.” “Now relations between us are in danger and doors are closing in Europe,” he said. “Jordan remains our passport to the West, but Hussein needs us, too. He can’t afford to talk to Israel without us. “There is no doubt that the events of the past few weeks have put paid to most of the gains we had made in the past three years. It is essential that there be an internal assessment within the P.L.O.’s ranks to find out what has happened.” The Palestinians’ nervousness has been increased by King Hussein’s statement that he is “reviewing his relationship” with the P.L.O. In an interview with the “New York Times,” King Hussein said: “The Palestinian cause has suffered some serious setbacks re-

cently, we will have to see what must be done.”

But in an interview with Egyptian journalists, he was reported to have gone even further, criticising the P.L.O.’s “faulty judgment,” and adding that he “could not support some of its recent acts.”

Most senior West Bank spokesmen insist King Hussein will not be able to move without P.L.O. backing. “It is important for the West to recognise that another separate peace treaty between an Arab State and Israel, like the Camp David agreement, is no longer possible,” said Hanna Seniora. “We know we are pawns on an international chessboard, but there can be no peace without us.” Freij, who paid tribute to Britain’s “very responsive attitude” when he met Sir Geoffrey Howe earlier this year, insists that “there is no alternative” to a continuation of the Jordanian-P.L.O. agreement signed last February. Britain seemed to be prepared to accept that, “but then we played straight into Israel’s hands.”

Although it is still not known exactly why the P.L.O. pulled back at the last minute from agreeing to a joint statement in which it was to renounce terrorism and sub-

scribe to United Nations resolutions recognising Israel’s right to exist within its pre-1967 frontiers, one Palestinian source has given an account which seems closer than most to explaining the fiasco. According to this, the text of the statement was drafted by Britain and Jordan, in consultation with Bishop Elias Khoury. “He even made some amendments which were accepted by the British,” the source said. But the text was never submitted to the P.L.O. leadership in Tunis and was not seen by the other Palestinian delegate, Mohammed Milhem, until he arrived in London. When Milhem told British officials he could not agree to it until he had consulted Tunis, he was told it was not negotiable; and the talks were then called off, the source said. “It was due to a lack

of organisation on our part, but it came as a gift from God for the Israelis,” he added. The P.L.O. leader, Yasser Arafat, has warned that Palestinian refugees in Beirut could come under renewed attack after the latest agreement between the Syrian Government and the heads of Lebanon’s warring militias, writes Shyam Bhatia. The Palestinian refugee camp of Sabra was overrun earlier this year after being attacked by Shia militiamen, but parts of the neighbouring camps of Shatila and Bourj al-Barajneh managed to hold out until a ceasefire was imposed. Now this last pocket of armed Palestinians has been told it must hand over its arms or face the consequences. Copyright — London Observer Service.