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American Morning

Month-Long Siege Lifted and Yasser Arafat Now Enjoying Newfound Freedom

Aired May 02, 2002 - 08:33   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: The month-long siege has been lifted and Yasser Arafat is now enjoying his newfound freedom.

CNN's Matthew Chance joins us now from Ramallah with more on where the Palestinian leader goes from here.

Good morning, Matthew.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.

And Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian leader, has finally emerged, as you've been reporting, from this compound in Ramallah. He's been touring the Palestinian areas, at least around Ramallah, having a view of the devastation, speaking to people, visiting a hospital, where several Palestinians are lying injured as a result of the latest Israeli military incursion and their siege around this compound. He also said a short prayer at a graveyard, a burial site for Palestinians.

Let me just give you an idea, though, that it's daytime here, of the amount of devastation that the Israeli forces left behind in this presidential compound.

You can see here behind me a barricade that is erected by Israeli bulldozers, using cars as the main means of stopping access. Inside that building, you see a few spectators there having a look around, at the presidential vehicles. We're talking limousines, and four-wheel drive cars that have been smashed to pieces literally by Israeli bulldozers.

As we pan across these buildings where Yasser Arafat spent more than a month holed up inside with those six wanted Palestinians and several hundred other people, it has to be said as well, you can see the scorch marks, the bullet holes in the walls, evidence of the ferocity of the fighting that carried on around this compound during the Israeli siege.

Now, Yasser Arafat, for his part in the immediate future, he told me last night he intended to travel around the Palestinian area, meeting people, viewing the devastation, indeed, that is what he has been doing. In the more medium term, though, he suggested that he would be intending to visit other countries, Arab countries, Arab capitals, like Cairo, he mentioned. Also, European countries as well. First of all, though, his priority, he said, was to show the Palestinian people that he understood what they've didn't going through, Paula.

ZAHN: Now, Matthew, he's expected to take, what, a couple trips within the next 48 hours, and the prime minister of Israel made it quite clear that if he leaves the country, there's a chance he's not going to let him back in.

CHANCE: Yes. In fact, I mean, our understanding here in Ramallah is that he hasn't even been given the go-ahead to actually leave the Palestinian areas of the West Bank and the Gaza Trip, but you're right. I mean, if he does, he is running the risk that Ariel Sharon, the Israeli prime minister, will not permit him back and will force him effectively into exile. I'm sure Yasser Arafat is very mindful of that possibility, and then he'll be weighing up the risks before he makes any final decisions about leaving the Palestinian territories, or even, in fact, leaving the West Bank and placing himself back in Gaza Strip -- Paula.

ZAHN: All right, Matthew Chance, thank you very much for that late report.

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