2 - 8 May 2002
Issue No.584
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 2 - 8 May 2002 Issue No.584 |
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A stark choice
Washington's credibility in the Middle East is at a crossroads. Which way will it turn, asks Ibrahim Nafie
A day after meeting Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, President George Bush called upon Israel to withdraw completely from the PA territories it had reoccupied. As significant as this position is, Washington has yet to take a firm stance against Tel Aviv's defiance of the Security Council resolution sending a fact-finding committee to Jenin. In fact the White House seemed to reward Israel for its intransigence, asking Congress to approve a $2 million aid package and inviting Prime Minister Sharon to Washington for consultations.
The ambiguity of the US position leaves a two-edged sword hovering over the region. It is unclear whether Washington intends to assume a more impartial role in the Middle East or whether it will maintain its pro-Israeli bias.
The meeting between Abdullah and Bush provided an opportunity to convey the Arab perspective on Israel's assault against the Palestinians and US policy in this regard. Reinforcing similar messages by other moderate Arab leaders, the crown prince's visit added to Arab efforts to counter Israeli aggression and to convince Washington of what must be done to end the current impasse.
Prince Abdullah presented Bush with a cohesive plan for ending the violence and resuming negotiations. The eight-point plan called for full Israeli withdrawal from the territories it has reoccupied, an end to the Israeli blockade of Ramallah, the reconstruction of PA areas destroyed, the renunciation of violence by both sides, the resumption of talks, an end to settlement construction and the implementation of Security Council resolution 242.
He also reaffirmed the Arab peace initiative adopted in the Arab Summit in Beirut on 29 March. This initiative puts paid to the Zionist rhetoric, heard so stridently in the US, to the effect that the state of Israel is in peril and that its aggression against the Palestinians is being undertaken in self-defence and as part of the fight against international terrorism. In the face of such claims the crown prince took pains to drive home the fundamental distinction between the US-led campaign against terrorism in Afghanistan and acts of repression and subjugation being perpetrated by an occupying power, resting his arguments on documented evidence of the crimes and human rights abuses Israel has perpetrated against the Palestinian people.
The crown prince's efforts clearly helped inspire a significant shift in US attitudes. In addition to its insistence upon a complete Israeli withdrawal, the Bush administration has taken other encouraging steps. Among these was its support for the Palestinian offer to prosecute those accused of assassinating former Israeli Minister of Tourism, Rahavam Zeevi. This stance paved the way for an agreement to lift the siege against Palestinian President Arafat, for Washington's backing, along with the presence of US and British "wardens" to guard the defendants, has undermined Israel's pretexts for sustaining its blockade against Arafat.
Nevertheless, Israel shows no sign of wanting to restore calm or resume negotiations. No sooner had Sharon agreed to lift the siege against Arafat than he ordered the invasion of Hebron. The reoccupation of Hebron was mounted with great savagery. With an onslaught of tanks and armoured vehicles and air support from F-16s and Apache helicopter gunships, one might have thought that the IDF was facing a huge, standing army. That occupation forces have been no less brutal than they have been in other Palestinian cities further illustrates that the Sharon's thirst for violence and destruction remains insatiable. For this reason the Arabs must remain circumspect about Israeli pledges on withdrawal or proposals for agreements.
The reoccupation of Hebron should also be viewed in light of Israel's attitude to Security Council resolution 1405. Not only has Israel objected to the inclusion in the fact-finding committee of such reputable figures as UN Middle East Envoy Tierje Roed-Larsen and UN Human Rights Commissioner Mary Robinson, but it has also asked the UN Secretary-General to postpone the arrival of the committee several times, buying time to cover up its crimes in Jenin.
Western capitals have issued repeated calls to Israel to allow the UN committee into Jenin. The British foreign secretary put it bluntly when he said: "If you have nothing to hide... get this fact finding mission in as soon as possible." US Secretary of State Colin Powell has issued a similar statement.
Yet Israel remains determined to dictate conditions to the UN: that the testimony given by Israeli soldiers should not be used in any future prosecutions; that the committee should not be allowed to draw conclusions or make recommendations based on its findings; and that it should contain an international expert on terrorism. Unless these conditions are met, Israeli officials say, they will not permit the committee to enter the Palestinian territories.
Israel's stonewalling has its closest allies befuddled. It is becoming increasingly difficult to credit the pretexts of a government that is so flagrantly obstructing resolutions adopted only after close consultations between Washington and Tel Aviv. How would Washington react had an Arab government, or any other Third World country not allied to the US, delivered a similar affront? Arab public opinion is in little doubt about the answer, one reason why Washington's credibility in the region is so low.
Bush's invitation to Sharon at this complex and fraught time will put US credibility to another test. The Arabs have presented an initiative to end the current conflict and reach a comprehensive, just and lasting peace. Israel has escalated its belligerency against the Palestinian people and demonstrated its scorn for international legitimacy. Washington, it would appear, has two choices. Either it can compel Israel to comply with UN resolutions, or it can continue its unmitigated pampering of Israel, leaving no remnant of doubt in the Arab mind that Washington is a full accomplice in Israel's crimes against the Palestinian people and its defiance of international law. Washington's credibility is at a crossroads in the Middle East, and the decisions it takes will lead the region back to the path of peace or closer to the brink of uncontainable disaster.
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