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CNN Live Today

Workers Protest Against Palestinian Authority

Aired July 01, 2002 - 08:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Now back to the Middle East and the future of Yasser Arafat as head of the Palestinian Authority. Over the weekend, Secretary of State Colin Powell and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice restated the Bush administration policy, that the U.S. will no longer deal with Arafat.

And in a new development today, some Palestinians are also protesting against Arafat.

Brent Sadler joins us now from Gaza City.

Good morning -- Brent.

BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.

Yes, indeed, more pressure this time in the streets of Gaza, formerly Yasser Arafat's headquarters, now bombed out, of course, during the hostilities over the past months.

But a very big protest here in the streets of Gaza a couple of hours ago. Let's show you some of those pictures now, as several thousand workers, these are men, mostly construction workers, who used to have pretty respectable wages from the Israelis -- over the past 30 years, some of them. And some of them look towards their working years under the Israelis with nostalgia and are showing a great deal of concern about the future, not least because of claims about corruption among the workers, corruption, they say, which is taking place among the Palestinian top leadership, which is denying them, they claim, the kind of things -- bonuses, from taxes, support from taxes, which they have paid, they say, since the Palestinian Authority came into effect.

Now, they marched through the center of Gaza, a very hot, dusty day here today, on the Palestinian compound, now abandoned, but still guarded, to plea for help -- financial help -- from the Palestinian Authority, which they believe has left them in the lurch.

Now, this has been quite clearly, as you can see from these pictures, a very embarrassing demonstration for the Palestinian Authority. These poverty-stricken workers now in organized uproar with finger-pointing at their own leadership and bureaucracy at the same time as the U.S. President, George Bush is really urging Palestinians to ponder their future under a continuing leadership of Yasser Arafat. Back to you -- Paula.

ZAHN: What is the concern, Brent, among Palestinians that this movement against Arafat will continue to grow?

SADLER: Well, having spent the last few days talking to Palestinians in refugee camps, people who used to earn several thousand dollars, in some cases, per month from their old Israeli employers, some are complaining that the closing of the Gaza, though, has given their old employers an excuse not to pay money.

They certainly are looking at where they should turn to next, an authority which they claim is corrupt. Arafat, no one here is openly calling for his replacement, but certainly, they're asking key questions at this crucial time of a change in U.S. policy towards Yasser Arafat -- Paula.

ZAHN: Brent Sadler, reporting from Gaza City this morning. Thanks so much for that update.

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