Israel Sabotaged Efforts To Reach Truce

Killing By Israeli Army Undermines Truce

New Blow To Allies' Peace Effort As Arafat Arrives In UK

By Suzanne Goldenberg
Monday October 15, 2001
Courtesy Of The Guardian

Israel sabotaged US and British efforts to solidify a Middle East truce yesterday by carrying out the first assassination of a Palestinian militant since the attacks on America on September 11.

Hours before the Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, arrived in Britain for a landmark visit, Israeli army snipers shot dead a Hamas operative as he stood on the flat roof of his home in the West Bank town of Qalqiliya.

Palestinian officials said Abed Rahman Hamad, 33, was shot twice in the chest.

Mr Arafat's meeting today with the prime minister, Tony Blair, is seen as crucial to a diplomatic offensive to persuade Arab states that the US and Britain are serious about seeking a solution to the Middle East conflict.

Arriving at Heathrow, Mr Arafat said: "This is a very important visit and we hope we will discuss with the prime minister the whole situation in the Middle East and the whole situation internationally."

Mr Blair will meet Mr Arafat over a working lunch in Downing Street along with the foreign secretary, Jack Straw. He will reassure the Palestinian leader that he supports the principle of a Palestinian state.

The talks will get under way amid renewed fears of a suicide bomb attack within the Jewish state after Hamas threatened to avenge the killing.

Mr Blair is to meet King Abdullah of Jordan tomorrow.

"There is no doubt Hamas will react to this ugly assassination crime in good time," said Abdel Aziz Rantissi, a senior Hamas leader in Gaza City.

Decoded, that means Hamas has abandoned its covert compliance with the truce agreed by Mr Arafat three weeks ago, and will resume killing civilians inside Israel, destroying the ceasefire for good.

Israeli officials said Hamad was one of the architects of a suicide bombing at a Tel Aviv disco last June that killed 21 Israelis, mainly teenagers from the former Soviet Union.

The government refused to claim responsibility for yesterday's assassination, but Raanan Gissin, a spokesman for the prime minister, Ariel Sharon, said: "In case of an impending attack, we reserve the right to take necessary steps. The fact that Hamad is no longer with us prevented a major suicide attack."

The Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group said Hamad was the 30th Palestinian activist assassinated by Israel since last November.

The assassination - which defies repeated Washington calls since September 11 for Israel to refrain from "provocative actions" - comes at a time when even Mr Sharon has been forced to grudgingly acknowledge Mr Arafat's efforts to impose a ceasefire on a reluctant Palestinian population.

Palestinian officials accused Israel of carrying out the assassination to undermine those efforts, and to sabotage the ceasefire. "The assassination today is a clear indicator that all the Israeli claims that they want to achieve peace and uphold the ceasefire are just lies," said Yasser Abd Rabbo, the Palestinian information minister.

At yesterday's security cabinet meeting, Mr Sharon ordered a token number of measures to loosen the stranglehold the Israeli army has over Palestinian cities and towns.

However, it was clear that Mr Sharon does not look favourably on Mr Blair's invitation to Mr Arafat, which runs counter to Israel's efforts to paint him as a terrorist beyond redemption. The Israeli leader is alarmed at a US and UK diplomatic offensive meant to win Palestinian support for the war on Afghanistan, and the Middle East truce.

With Washington poised to unveil a new peace initiative calling for a Palestinian state with a shared capital in Jerusalem, Mr Sharon appears to be digging himself in for a long and bitter fight with the international community.