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Arafat persists with security reforms

By Atul Aneja

MANAMA (BAHRAIN) JULY 12. MANAMA (BAHRAIN), JULY 12. As the countdown to the crucial meeting among the United States, Russia, the European Union on the West Asian situation begins, the Palestinian Authority is persisting with its security reforms in line with Washington's demand for change in its core decision-making set-up.

The embattled President of the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Arafat, has appointed Mohammad Dahlan as his national security adviser, a move that will go down well in the U.S. The 41-year-old Mr. Dahlan, who enjoys considerable support in the Gaza Strip, has been widely projected in the U.S. as a possible successor to Mr. Arafat. Israeli officials are also of the view that they could do business with him. Despite Mr. Dahlan's appointment that has been preceded by the positioning of a new security chief as well as Ministers of Interior and Finance, there are as yet no clear indications that the U.S. will relent on its demand for the removal of Mr. Arafat as the head of the Palestinian Authority.

Nevertheless, departing from its earlier script, Israel's new army chief, General Moshe Yahalon, widely acknowledged as a hardliner, has opposed Mr. Arafat's expulsion from the Palestinian territories, provided pressure on him is not eased. Apart from redefining his security establishment, Mr. Arafat has held consultations with the E.U.'s West Asia envoy, Miguel Angel.

Indicating the mood within the E.U. that appears to be at variance with the current thinking in the U.S. establishment, the French Foreign Minister, Dominique de Villepin, who has just concluded a visit to the region, has told the U.S. Secretary of State, Colin Powell, that Israel must withdraw to its borders that were altered during the 1967 six-day Arab Israeli war. Officials from the E.U., U.S., Russia and the U.N., who form the quartet spearheading the new international diplomatic initiative on West Asia, will be joined by representatives from Japan, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank prior to the ministerial meeting on Tuesday. The presence of representatives of the financial institutions and Japan is seen here as part of preparations for economic reconstruction in case a thaw between the Israelis and Palestinians is achieved. The Palestinians and the Israelis earlier this week began discussions on the release of Palestinian funds that lie frozen in Israeli coffers. The U.S. is reportedly keen to have these funds partly released but the Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, has been resisting this move, unless it can be ascertained that the money will not be diverted towards terrorism.

The U.S. President, George W. Bush, on Thursday spoke to the Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, and Jordan's King Abdullah, two countries that have considerable influence on the Palestinian Authority. The Egyptian intelligence chief, for instance, is playing a lead role in reforming the Palestinian Authority's security architecture.

In a related development, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister, Saud al Faisal, has just concluded a whirlwind visit of the Arab world prior to the Arab League meeting in Cairo on Friday to discuss the recent events revolving around the West Asian crisis.

Analysts point out that Saudi Arabia is concerned that the U.S. is not prioritising its proposal for an international conference on the West Asian situation. The Saudis have also been advocating normalisation of ties with Israel based on the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from territories occupied in 1967.

The Saudi Foreign Minister along with his counterparts from Egypt and Jordan is expected to join the second session of the quartet meeting in New York on Tuesday.

AP reports:

The imprisoned Palestinian leader, Marwan Barghouti, would be expelled to Lebanon under a deal taking shape between Israel and the Hezbollah guerillas, Israel Army Radio reported.

Israel would send Mr. Barghouti through Lebanon to exile in Europe, release about 100 prisoners and return the bodies of dozens of Hezbollah guerillas. In exchange, Hezbollah would free Elhanan Tennenbaum, an Israeli citizen abducted in October 2000, and return the bodies of three Israeli soldiers abducted from the Israel-Lebanon border around the same time.

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