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American Morning

Discussion with Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert

Aired January 11, 2002 - 07:45   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 we move on to the crisis in the Middle East. Israeli bulldozers have ripped up the runways at the airport in Gaza, considered a major symbol of Palestinian sovereignty. That, after this week's raid by Palestinians on an Israeli army post in which four Israeli soldiers and two Palestinians were killed. And all of that after Israel's seizure of a huge shipload of arms apparently headed for the Palestinians.

Joining us now in our studio is the Mayor of Jerusalem, Ehud Olmert. Good to have you with us, sir. Thank you very much for joining us.

EHUD OLMERT, MAYOR, JERUSALEM: Good morning, Paula.

ZAHN: What is it that Israel hopes to accomplish by ripping up the runways at Gaza International Airport?

OLMERT: Trying to prevent all the measures that can help the Palestinians bring in more weapons that are aimed at using it for terror. It's as simple as that.

ZAHN: But, basically...

OLMERT: The runway is one of those instruments through which planes can land and helicopters can land and bring in weapons. And after the terrible experience with the shipload of weapons that were aimed at shooting at us, we must be very careful.

ZAHN: Palestinian authorities now have arrested two leading members of what they say are Islamic jihad. One radical who is on your country's most wanted list. That is a positive development, is it not?

OLMERT: Well, first of all, every positive development will be welcomed. But past experience proves to us that normally these guys are arrested for about five hours, 10 hours. They're invited to the - to the prison for a photo op, and when the photographers disappear they also disappear from jail. So the question is whether Arafat is determined to take the necessary measures to stop terror.

ZAHN: But these two...

OLMERT: Up until now he didn't do it.

ZAHN: But these two radicals remain under arrest. There is no indication that they are going to be freed anytime soon, is there?

OLMERT: It remains to be seen, Paula, because all the other rests they made were - all the prisoners were released after a few hours. So Arafat has to put - the president said yesterday something which I think was very much to the point. He said it is incumbent of Arafat to prove that he fights terror. Up until now, after all the promises made, after all the commitments made, he did nothing on the contrary. He tried to bring in more shipment of weapons and he continued the attacks. So he has to prove it. Let's see.

ZAHN: Your prime minister has been saying for many, many weeks that Yasser Arafat is irrelevant. So is the president talking about the wrong guy here?

OLMERT: No. He's irrelevant as long as he doesn't fight terror. He's irrelevant for political negotiations. He will become relevant if he will prove that he's relevant. And the only way to prove that he is relevant is to stop the terrorist attacks against innocent people. I think the president was absolutely right when he demanded Arafat to make all these steps to stop terror.

America is fighting terror in Afghanistan; Israel has to fight terror in our place. And Arafat is the guy who runs these terrorist actions. And as long as he runs terror, he can't be a partner for political negotiations. And in that respect, he's irrelevant.

ZAHN: Do you understand why some Palestinians are saying today by simply ripping up the runways at Gaza International Airport you are clearly sending a signal that there's very little hope that either side will go back to the negotiating table.

OLMERT: Listen, if you don't do anything they continue this terror. If you do something, they will continue with terror. Listen, let's be very simple about it. Those who are perpetrating terrorist actions must be punished, must be fought. And we will fight them and we will do exactly what your country is doing. We will not compromise with terror, we'll fight it.

If ripping up the runways in Gaza Airport can help us in fighting terror and stopping some of the actions, we will do it. And we'll do any other thing that will serve this purpose.

ZAHN: You also say it may be a positive development that the Palestinian authorities arrested these two - two radicals if they continue to maintain them in police custody. If they do, are you more optimistic that the peace process will come back together?

OLMERT: This is just a tiny - one very tiny little step. There is so much that needs to be done; there are so many terrorists that ought to be arrested. There are so many other measures that must be taking. Dismantling the entire infrastructure of terror that was built for the last eight years by Arafat himself is the major objective. It has to be done; it can't be performed by just one overnight arrest of two guys that may or may not stay in prison much longer. So it's something that can't be resolved within a few hours or a few days. Forget about it. It's a long process. There is a long, long process, and a very difficult job for Arafat. If he means it, if he wants it, if he's serious about it - and to be very honest with you, the past performance of Arafat proves that there is one thing that he does and one thing that he says and they are totally incompatible. So let's wait and see.

ZAHN: Mayor Olmert, we're going to leave it there this morning. Thank you for joining us on your cross-country tour. He's stopped off here in New York to join us this morning, he's soon heading to Los Angeles.

OLMERT: Thank you very much.

ZAHN: I appreciate your time.

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