The Israeli army has a contingency plan to grab Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat from his West Bank headquarters and fly him to exile in an Arab state, Israeli television said Friday night.
Channel Two TV disclosed the plan, approved in principle by Israeli prime Minister Ariel Sharon, included a raid on Arafat's Ramallah compound by special forces who would ensure he was not harmed physically during the operation.
He would then be taken to a waiting helicopter and flown to an Arab country which has no diplomatic ties with Israel and no close ties with the United States, Israel's premier ally, the television said, naming Lebanon or Libya as a possible destination.
The report said the scenario was a contingency plan, not necessarily likely to be implemented anytime soon.
According to the report, the plan was presented to the Cabinet shortly after Sharon and then-Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz discussed it in April. During the discussion of the plan, several ministers argued that the damage it would cause Israel outweighed its benefits.
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
