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CNN Live Today
Crisis in the Middle East
Aired August 22, 2003 - 10:09 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.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: We turn our eyes now overseas to the Middle East, where it has been a day of anger. Thousands of Palestinians took to the streets of Gaza today. They were out there mourning and protesting the Israeli killing of a Hamas political leader.
CNN's Michael Holmes joins us now. He's joining us by way of videophone and he is in Gaza City today.
Michael, what's the word today?
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Leon.
Yes, it was a four-hour funeral procession that involved tens of thousands of Palestinians, many of them members of militant organizations, many just ordinary Palestinians who came out to pay their respects to Ismail Abu Shanab, a man that many Palestinians say was a moderate voice within Hamas. Israel disagrees with that, and says that he was closely involved in terrorist acts.
Now he was, of course, killed in a missile strike on his vehicle yesterday, Thursday here in Gaza City, which we covered rather extensively.
Today the funeral, as I say, a huge affair, tens of thousands of people, and a lot of anger. Some of the things you hear being chanted there over those loud speakers -- the road map is gone, it is time for martyrism, it is time for revenge, the cease-fire is over, and things of that ilk. There were members of various militant groups, Islamic Jihad, Hamas, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, also Fatwa was represented there, very hardline.
We spoke with a couple of senior Hamas members who called on the Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas to not hold any more talks with Israel. That's not something that most people would want to see, but it's something that Hamas is certainly calling for.
One notable thing, Leon, lot of security there, Hamas security, looking after their senior members. We saw that a lot of Hamas members changed cars frequently. There was one senior Hamas member who was surrounded by bodyguards, and they were all wearing the same blue hat. They were obviously trying to confuse any Israeli surveillance that might be in the area and avoid the same fate as Abu Shanab. This funeral went on, as I said, for some four hours.
There would have been more people there, according to Palestinians, if Israel hat not set up a roadblock in the Gaza Strip, essentially dividing the Gaza Strip into two. They say that this was done to prevent many Hamas supporters in the south of Gaza from coming to the funeral.
Now Israel, a very different viewpoint. Last evening, there were a whole bunch of mortars fired at the Gushta (ph) settlement block in the Gaza strip, some dozen or so mortars fired, no injuries, some damage. And Israel says that it reinstituted this road block, which it lifted only in July, in order to provide security for that region -- Leon.
HARRIS: All right, Michael, quickly, just one quick question we have to ask you here, and it is, where is Yasser Arafat in all of this? There are questions right now about the potency of Mahmoud Abbas and his role right now? Many people saying that now perhaps one person who can step forward into the breach and actually achieve anything in terms of settling down emotions there, perhaps even inflaming them more, would be Yasser Arafat. Have we heard anything at all from him, or do you expect to?
HOLMES: Yes. Not as yet. You never know with Yasser Arafat. He might pop out of the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) and make a statement. However, he has been laying low. You make the point, Leon, that even Colin Powell was calling on Yasser Arafat, naming him, and this is a man they wanted to marginalize, push out of negotiations, but Colin Powell urging him to work with Mahmoud Abbas.
Now The reason for that simply is this, Yasser Arafat still controls a lot of the security forces within the Palestinian authority. The Palestinian security chief, Mahmoud Abbas -- not Mahmoud Abbas, Mohammed Dalan (ph), he controls some, but not all, and what Colin Powell is trying to do is say Yasser Arafat, you need to hand over control to Mahmoud Abbas and give him some power to act on groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
Certainly, though in the wake of the targeted killing here in Gaza yesterday, there's no mood at the moment for the PA to move on Hamas. Certainly there's no support for that on the streets of Gaza -- Leon.
HARRIS: Very interesting. Thank you very much, Michael. Michael Holmes, reporting live for us from Gaza City.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired August 22, 2003 - 10:09 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: We turn our eyes now overseas to the Middle East, where it has been a day of anger. Thousands of Palestinians took to the streets of Gaza today. They were out there mourning and protesting the Israeli killing of a Hamas political leader.
CNN's Michael Holmes joins us now. He's joining us by way of videophone and he is in Gaza City today.
Michael, what's the word today?
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Leon.
Yes, it was a four-hour funeral procession that involved tens of thousands of Palestinians, many of them members of militant organizations, many just ordinary Palestinians who came out to pay their respects to Ismail Abu Shanab, a man that many Palestinians say was a moderate voice within Hamas. Israel disagrees with that, and says that he was closely involved in terrorist acts.
Now he was, of course, killed in a missile strike on his vehicle yesterday, Thursday here in Gaza City, which we covered rather extensively.
Today the funeral, as I say, a huge affair, tens of thousands of people, and a lot of anger. Some of the things you hear being chanted there over those loud speakers -- the road map is gone, it is time for martyrism, it is time for revenge, the cease-fire is over, and things of that ilk. There were members of various militant groups, Islamic Jihad, Hamas, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, also Fatwa was represented there, very hardline.
We spoke with a couple of senior Hamas members who called on the Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas to not hold any more talks with Israel. That's not something that most people would want to see, but it's something that Hamas is certainly calling for.
One notable thing, Leon, lot of security there, Hamas security, looking after their senior members. We saw that a lot of Hamas members changed cars frequently. There was one senior Hamas member who was surrounded by bodyguards, and they were all wearing the same blue hat. They were obviously trying to confuse any Israeli surveillance that might be in the area and avoid the same fate as Abu Shanab. This funeral went on, as I said, for some four hours.
There would have been more people there, according to Palestinians, if Israel hat not set up a roadblock in the Gaza Strip, essentially dividing the Gaza Strip into two. They say that this was done to prevent many Hamas supporters in the south of Gaza from coming to the funeral.
Now Israel, a very different viewpoint. Last evening, there were a whole bunch of mortars fired at the Gushta (ph) settlement block in the Gaza strip, some dozen or so mortars fired, no injuries, some damage. And Israel says that it reinstituted this road block, which it lifted only in July, in order to provide security for that region -- Leon.
HARRIS: All right, Michael, quickly, just one quick question we have to ask you here, and it is, where is Yasser Arafat in all of this? There are questions right now about the potency of Mahmoud Abbas and his role right now? Many people saying that now perhaps one person who can step forward into the breach and actually achieve anything in terms of settling down emotions there, perhaps even inflaming them more, would be Yasser Arafat. Have we heard anything at all from him, or do you expect to?
HOLMES: Yes. Not as yet. You never know with Yasser Arafat. He might pop out of the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) and make a statement. However, he has been laying low. You make the point, Leon, that even Colin Powell was calling on Yasser Arafat, naming him, and this is a man they wanted to marginalize, push out of negotiations, but Colin Powell urging him to work with Mahmoud Abbas.
Now The reason for that simply is this, Yasser Arafat still controls a lot of the security forces within the Palestinian authority. The Palestinian security chief, Mahmoud Abbas -- not Mahmoud Abbas, Mohammed Dalan (ph), he controls some, but not all, and what Colin Powell is trying to do is say Yasser Arafat, you need to hand over control to Mahmoud Abbas and give him some power to act on groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
Certainly, though in the wake of the targeted killing here in Gaza yesterday, there's no mood at the moment for the PA to move on Hamas. Certainly there's no support for that on the streets of Gaza -- Leon.
HARRIS: Very interesting. Thank you very much, Michael. Michael Holmes, reporting live for us from Gaza City.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
