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Arafat
has long been dubbed “persona non grata” by Tel Aviv and
Washington
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By
Hadi Yahmed, IOL Paris Correspondent
PARIS,
June 14 (IslamOnline.net) - The U.S. has decided to send Palestinian
leader Yassir Arafat into exile, as he failed to stop the Palestinian
resistance operations, considered by the Washington as
"terrorism", a Tunisian source in Paris told IslamOnline.net
Saturday, June 14.
"Arafat
exile whereabouts will be in Hamamat area, southern Tunisia, the
construction process is in the final stage," the source - asking
not to be named - said.
"Soha
Arafat - his wife - supervises the construction process herself, as she
has settled in Tunis lately," the source added.
He
pointed out "the U.S. administration gave the green light to the
Tunisian President, Zain al-Abidin Ben Ali to be ready to receive
Arafat,” as Tunisia received Arafat in 1982 following the Israeli
invasion of Lebanon when the Palestinian resistance had to get out of
Beirut and resort to Tunis.
The
source said that giving the green light to the Tunisian President to
receive Arafat falls within the context of the mediator role by Ben Ali
in similar situations with Washington. Ben Ali has offered exile to
ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on a request from the U.S. hours
before the Iraq invasion was unleashed, he elaborated.
On
June 24, 2002, the U.S. President called on the Palestinians to change
their leadership - a clear reference to - as a precondition to establish
Palestinian state by 2005.
On
April 27, 2003, London-based Asharq al-Awsat newspaper quoted U.S.
officials as saying that Washington was putting pressure on Arab and
European states to cut diplomatic contacts with Arafat, and to transfer
financial aids away from his control.
Arafat
stayed in Tunisia between 1982 and 1994, returned to occupied
Palestinian lands after Oslo treaty.
He
escaped many assassination attempts during his stay in Tunis, with the
Israeli raid in 1985 as the closest call. It targeted the offices of
Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in Hammam Village, and while
Arafat escaped death narrowly, many other Palestinians and Tunisians
were killed.
