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US SET TO PUSH SHARON ON "PALESTINIAN HOMELAND"
WEST TO BEGIN MEDIA BLITZ?
PA/PLO POLICE KILL 6 PRO-BIN LADEN DEMONSTRATORS
SYRIA ELECTED TO UN SECURITY COUNCIL
:: US CONTINUES TO PRESSURE ISRAEL: The Bush administration
is prepared in the next few weeks to publicly increase pressure
on Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to accept not only a Palestinian
state but a viable Palestinian homeland that includes a "shared
Jerusalem," according to US officials and a State Department
draft statement. President Bush will have final say over the
US position. The distinction between a "Palestinian state"
and a "viable homeland" is key to understanding the
importance of the latest initiative, and how it may be received.
Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia told Washington ten
days before the September 11 terror attacks that US policy towards
the Arab-Israeli conflict had become untenable. According to
diplomatic sources in Riyadh, the prince's letter to Bush prompted
US reassurances that apparently led to US backing for the establishment
of a Palestinian state. The Riyadh sources said the letter was
part of a dialogue started in the June meeting in Paris between
Abdullah and Powell. The letter shows the world's largest oil
exporter trying to influence US policy on the Middle East conflict
at a time when Arab public opinion and governments had become
increasingly disillusioned by US backing for Israel. This suggests
that Bush's statement last week supporting the idea of a Palestinian
state was not directly tied to US efforts to bring Arab nations
into the coalition against terrorism. US officials confirmed
that an exchange of letters had taken place shortly before last
month's attacks but did not comment on the details of them.
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:: WEST TO BEGIN MEDIA BLITZ? Only five days after the bombing
of Afghanistan began, British Prime Minister Tony Blair made
the extraordinary admission that the West was in danger of losing
the propaganda war in Muslim states. He said: "One thing
becoming increasingly clear to me is the need to upgrade our
media and public opinion operations in the Arab and Muslim world...
Central to that is the new US thinking. It is based on proposals
on the table when the Israelis and Palestinians met in January
at Taba in Egypt. The proposal would give Palestinians roughly
95 percent of Judea, Samaria and Gaza (Yesha) and control over
parts of East Jerusalem, including key urban corridors that would
bolster their economy.
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:: PA/PLO POLICE KILL 6 PRO-BIN LADEN DEMONSTRATORS: Grassroots
Arab support for Bin Laden continues to cause problems for the
Palestinian Authority, and in fact, PA/PLO police have reacted
so forcefully that they killed six Palestinians in Gaza over
the past two days - three in clashes on Monday, and three more
Tuesday. Thousands of Palestinian students and others have demonstrated
against the American offensive in Afghanistan since Monday, and
large posters of Bin Laden were displayed.
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:: SYRIA ELECTED TO UN SECURITY COUNCIL: Syria was elected
almost unanimously for a two-year non-permanent membership of
the UN Security Council Monday -- despite the UN Charter's stipulation
that countries should be included on the council based on their
"contribution to international peace and security"
(Chapter V, Article 23). Syria is the headquarters and financial
backer for several Palestinian [Islamic Jihad, Hamas], Lebanese
[Hizb'Allah], and other terrorist groups, and has been designated
by the US as a state sponsor of terrorism. The United States
did not oppose Syria's candidacy. A statement released by Israel's
Foreign Ministry Wednesday afternoon said that the choice is
a "total distortion, a badge of shame for the United Nations
and its institutions." Earlier, unnamed government sources
have severely criticized the move, calling it "pure cynicism,"
"an absurdity," and "nonsensical." The Security
Council is composed of fifteen members, five of whom -- US, UK,
China, France, and Russia -- are permanent and have veto power.
Syria, Mexico, Guinea, Bulgaria, and Cameroon will begin their
two-year terms on Jan. 1, 2002, joining Colombia, Ireland, Mauritius,
Norway and Singapore, which conclude their two-year terms on
December 31, 2002.
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