U.S. President Bush said Sunday that the Israeli-Palestinian deal he set in motion to end the siege of Yasser Arafat's compound marked a "hopeful day" in the Mideast crisis, and demanded that Arafat — freed from house arrest — must step up his efforts to end terrorism in the region.
"Chairman Arafat is now free to move around and free to lead, and we expect him to do so," Bush told reporters on his ranch, after a weekend of quiet diplomacy led to his greatest accomplishment in trying to defuse the crisis. "One of things he must do is condemn and thwart terrorist activities."
But with stalemates and a setback on other fronts, Bush cautioned: "Much hard work remains and this is a time for all of us to commit to fight terror and to promote peace in the Middle East."
Bush called Sharon Saturday — three times, according to the Israeli government — and dispatched diplomats to negotiate directly with Arafat. Bush won agreement on his proposal that U.S. and British nonmilitary personnel guard six Palestinians who are wanted by Israel on assassination charges and are being kept in Arafat's headquarters at Ramallah, besieged for a month.
In turn, Israeli troops would withdraw from Ramallah and Arafat would be allowed to leave his compound and move freely in the Palestinian areas of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Both sides approved the proposal on Sunday.
"This has been a hopeful day for the region, and we must continue to press forward to peace," Bush was quoted as saying by AP.
Bush renewed his demand that all parties in the conflict — the Israelis, Palestinians and Arab neighbors — meet their "responsibilities" to help end the conflict, but directed special attention to Arafat.
Palestinian officials expect the siege imposed on Arafat's headquarters to be lifted Tuesday.
"Chairman Arafat (must) now seize this opportunity to act decisively in word and in deed against terror directed at Israeli citizens," Bush said. "He hasn't earned my respect. He must earn my respect by leading."
Bush praised Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Abdullah, with whom the president met on his ranch Thursday, for presenting specific ideas on how to advance the peace process, and called to thank him before Abdullah left the country Sunday evening.
Even as he warned Arafat to step up, Bush went out of his way to express sympathy for Palestinians living with Israeli occupations and military actions — a message the crown prince had delivered Thursday.
Bush renewed his promise to provide humanitarian assistance to Palestinians, and called on other nations to follow suit. "My heart grieves for a people who have no hope, and there are a lot of people who have no hope in the Middle East," Bush said. "There are some Palestinians who wonder whether or not life is worth living."
Secretary of State Colin Powell called Arafat earlier Sunday. Arafat accepted the U.S. plan on Ramallah, after meeting with American and British diplomats later Sunday.
Senior U.S. officials had said the proposed arrangement would be a test of Arafat's seriousness about “fighting terrorism.” (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
