Palestinian resistance factions have warned against any 'security' role by Arab states

By Abdul Raheem Ali, IOL Staff

CAIRO, June 24 (IslamOnline.net) - Egyptian and Palestinian sources revealed that the Egyptian Intelligence director Omar Suleiman's latest visit to Ramallah and Israel aimed to explore the scope of readiness by both the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government to meet the five conditions Egypt had offered in order to shoulder a security role in Gaza following a declared unilateral Israeli withdrawal in March 2005.

The sources, meanwhile, underestimated reported Palestinian concerns about the Egyptian security role in Gaza, pinpointing that those are "normal whirlwinds that aim to pulse the three parties of the equation (Egyptian, Israeli and Palestinian).

The goal is to reach a clear-cut position in this light before holding comprehensive dialogue among Palestinian factions in Cairo in July 2004."

Ten Palestinian factions, including Hamas and Jihad, have issued Tuesday June 22, a joint statement objecting to any Arab role in the Gaza Strip, in reference to Egypt and Jordan.

Egypt has proposed sending some 200 police officers to train a force of 30.000 Palestinian policemen in order to maintain security following the alleged unilateral Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Egypt is also expected to boost its military redeployment along the Egyptian-Gaza borders after the Israeli withdrawal.

Commenting on the statement, Egypt's Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher Wednesday called on journalists "to disregard such news, as things are on their right track and meetings and consultations continue with the concerned bodies, particularly the Palestinian organizations."

Maher demanded "not to follow such attempts and ignore those who claim to speak on behalf of the Palestinian factions, as Egypt is in direct contacts with all Palestinian factions."

Required Guarantees

On the aim of Suleiman's visit to Ramallah and Tel Aviv Wednesday, June 23, Makram Mohamed Ahmed, editor in chief of the Egyptian "Al-Musawar magazine who is close to the Egyptian political leadership, said "Cairo can only get involved in Gaza once clear guarantees for the success of its plan there have been obtained."

"Egyptians will never move against the Palestinian interests. Their main aim now is to achieve Palestinian unity and complete harmony among all factions," Ahmed added in statements to IslamOnline.net.

"Egypt will only interfere when it guarantees the fulfillment of the five conditions it has submitted," Ahmed went on.

Israel shoulders the responsibility of implementing four of these conditions; complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza Strip, provision of safe corridors for Palestinians between the West Bank and Gaza Strip, withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Saladin borderline between Egypt and Gaza Strip leaving it under the Egyptian control and linking Israeli withdrawal from Gaza to the implementation of the international roadmap plan to settle the Palestinian cause.

The fifth Egyptian condition is unifying the Palestinian security agencies; a matter that topped Suleiman's agenda in his talks with Arafat and Qurei', according to the Egyptian and Palestinian sources.

Concluding his meeting with Suleiman, Arafat said that the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza Strip "should go hand in hand with their withdrawal from the West Bank" to allow setting up the Palestinian state.

Suleiman has not made any press statements in Ramallah and headed to Tel Aviv to meet both Israeli Defense and Foreign Ministers.

According to the same sources, Suleiman will, meanwhile, discuss the issues of the canal Israel intends to dig along the Egyptian-Gaza borders under the pretext of stopping weapons smuggling and the expansions in some settlements of Gaza that Sharon's government has lately intended to establish.

Sharon declared last week that Israel would only dig the proposed canal upon the approval of Egypt.

Understanding Israeli Agenda

On his part, Fahd Suleiman, a member of the political bureau of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, told IslamOnline.net, "The most important thing now is to know the Israeli agenda concerning the Gaza withdrawal, which is what Suleiman seeks to do."

Suleiman pointed out that Egypt's disclosure of the Israeli plan would help uncover the remaining details, including the attitude of the Palestinian factions towards all roles particularly the Egyptian one.

"In case what is currently debated is the co-existence of the Egyptian-Israeli security presence in Gaza, this will embarrass the Egyptians and make the Palestinians suspect the nature of the Egyptian presence and the extent to which it serves the Palestinian situation in general," he elaborated.

"Yet, in case of a complete and comprehensive withdrawal from Gaza with safe corridors between Gaza Strip and the West Bank and in case Israel ends its presence along the Egyptian-Gaza borders, there will be a different Palestinian reaction," he added.

Fahd pointed out that the Egyptian efforts are not limited to knowing the trends on both the PA and the Israeli government levels but they are extended to the Palestinian factions as well.

"Following Suleiman's visit to Ramallah, another visit is expected to take place by an Egyptian high-ranking delegation to Gaza to hold consultations with Palestinian factions and get acquainted with the latest developments in preparation for an intensive dialogue to be held in Cairo next July," he added.