26 April - 2 May 2001
Issue No.531
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 26 April - 2 May 2001 Issue No.531 |
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Packing a stronger punch
Yasser Arafat sends his regrets, Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah shows up early, and security is very, very tight. Azadeh Moaveni previews the Intifada conference in Tehran
Since the fateful day Iranian revolutionaries handed the Israeli embassy in Tehran to the PLO and Yasser Arafat became the first international figure to visit the newly minted Islamic Republic, Iran has had a unique relationship to the Palestinian cause. Arafat's signing of the Oslo Accords garnered him Iranian disfavour, but Tehran is still a virtual weekend retreat for radical Palestinian groups like Hamas.
Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah arriving at the Intifada conference in Tehran
(photo: AFP)
At this week's Intifada conference in Tehran, which opened on Tuesday, Iran will once again trumpet itself as the most loyal champion of Palestinian rights, a lone national voice demanding justice in a region of gutless Arab leaders.
For all the buzz and the inevitably fiery speeches, the conference will largely be a propaganda vehicle to rally political support for the seven-month-old Al-Aqsa Intifada. Iran will hardly be able to pry open the Arab world's purse-strings, despite the promises made at the Arab summit held in Amman last month. Having succeeded in scaring off Arafat himself, the conference's key tasks will be to pursue an international war crimes tribunal in the Hague for Israeli crimes against Palestinians and to organise a referendum for Palestinians to consider a two-state solution.
Palestinian Mufti Sheikh Akrameh Said Sabri, who arrived with a 24-member Palestinian delegation, thanked Iran for the "great step" it was taking in support of the Intifada. Palestine National Council head Salim Al-Zanoun brought a message from Arafat seeking more coordination with Iran. In addition to communicating Arafat's regrets, his letter called for the creation of an Islamic Fund similar to the funds set-up in October in Cairo to support the Palestinians.
On the face of things, Iran's aggressively anti-Israel foreign policy stance is running strong. But Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei signalled a shift last year, when -- without acknowledging Israel's existence -- he called for a referendum to let the Palestinian people decide whether to accept a two-state solution. While such a premise is not exactly rational, the spirit of Khamenei's suggestion is significant. "Iran is saying there is a way [out of this] antagonistic deadlock," said a Tehran analyst. "This, like all else, can be bargained." President Mohamed Khatami seconded Khamenei's idea during the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) meeting in Qatar late last year.
Iran's relationship with Palestinian militant groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which remains a key obstacle to re-establishing Iran-US ties, is not as straightforward as it seems. This week, Khamenei credited Hizbullah for the Al-Aqsa Intifada, claiming that the militia awakened the possibility for Palestinian resistance through its own victory in south Lebanon last summer. Hizbullah leader Sayed Hassan Nasrallah, who arrived in Tehran several days early, has always said the group is open to Khamenei's advice -- which has urged Hizbullah to take the initiative in fighting Israel. Whether this means Hizbullah should simply be pro-active in its resistance, or take the lead in the wider struggle, is not clear.
Arab diplomats in Tehran believe the conference will attract more attention than it deserves. This is partly due to the headline-grabbing strength of an Iran-Hamas-Hizbullah axis, whether this is real or not. But it also a function of the inability of Arab summits to muster the energy such occasions demand. Either way, having Khamenei, Khatami, Nasrallah and a coterie of Palestinian militants in one room will be a historical moment in the latest chapter of the struggle.
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