Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Sunday Morning

Israel and White House React to Arafat's Speech

Aired December 16, 2001 - 11:28   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.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: You've just been watching Palestinian President Yasser Arafat speaking to the world, declaring a state of emergency, implementing strict guidelines, outlawing any organization that's carrying out terrorist activities, calling for a cease-fire.

We now go to Jerusalem bureau chief Mike Hanna, with Israeli reaction to Yasser Arafat's speech and his call to stop all armed activities.

MIKE HANNA, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Well, a very important speech there by the Palestinian Authority leader, that was broadcast to the Palestinian people marking the end of Ramadan this particular day, a day of celebration throughout the Palestinian areas.

A very important speech, major themes that emerged in that, firstly that the Palestinian Authority is the supreme controlling body within the Palestinian areas, and that no attempts to undermine its supremacy will be accepted.

Secondly, a very strong call for an end to armed attacks against Israelis, in particular mention of suicide bomb attacks. A very strong statement as well that organizations that control to plan or carry out these attacks will be outlawed, that action will be taken against anybody who fails to follow the Palestinian Authority demand on this.

Also, the statement that the response to, as he puts it, the attacks by Israel is undermining the Palestinian Authority efforts to secure a peace and to secure down the line a Palestinian State. Mr. Arafat's charge that the government of Ariel Sharon is using these attacks as a pretext to continue preventing the process of statehood for the Palestinian people, and very importantly too, a call for an immediate renewal of negotiation. Negotiation says the Palestinian leader, is the only way to achieve a peace, to bring an end to the violence.

Well, with me for an immediate response is a spokesman for the Israeli Prime Minister, Ra'Anan Gissin. Thank you very much for joining us. Your immediate response to this?

RA'ANAN GISSIN, ARIEL SHARON'S SPOKESMAN: Well, you know, I must say that I have to be a little skeptical because Arafat made these statements before. He made it on the 27th of September when he accepted a cease-fire. We buried 67 people since then, and 500 more were wounded.

He said similar things when General Zinni came here, and he promised that he would do certain things, and then we still buried 44 people and 300 are injured as a result of a wave of terrorist activity.

So I want to judge Arafat by his deeds, not by his words. I mean, he needs not to convince CNN, not the international media, not even his own people that he wants peace. He needs to convince the one constituency that he lost in the past 14 months. That's the Israeli public.

HANNA: This being said, the strongest public call that Mr. Arafat has made for an end to terror attacks against Israel.

GISSIN: I only wish, and I have a prayer, this is Eid Al-Fitr. It's a holiday of peace for the Arabs, and indeed there were no attacks today in the territories, which by the way points out that when Arafat wants to control the situation, he can control it. When he wants to take action, he can take action.

I do hope that these words will be followed by the necessary deeds, the pledges, the promises that he made since September 9, 1993 in Oslo, to renounce terrorism, to fight the terrorist infrastructure, to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure, to stop the incitement.

When those things happen, then we will be back on the road to peace. Then we will be back on the road to a cease-fire and then, perhaps, Arafat will once again be relevant.

HANNA: Well you have stated the position of the Israeli government is that Mr. Arafat is not relevant, but the very fact with respect that you're sitting here responding appears to imply that he is still relevant, that he is the only person at this stage with whom Israel can do business.

GISSIN: Well, you know, we do not have anything personal against Arafat. We're not out there to take him out. We're not out there to harm him, and the attacks or the operation that we are conducting now, Operation Safeguard as we call it, comes only in response to the fact that Arafat only talked and never did anything.

He never destroyed the terrorist infrastructure. He never made the right arrests and that's why these people attacked in Emanuel (ph). He had the names of these people and no arrests were done.

So allow me to be a little skeptical and wary. At the same time, I would welcome any kind of change in his policy. If he really assume the position that he wants to make history for his people and for the Middle East, then he should start taking action. This is not the time for talk.

This is not the time for words. It's the time for Yasser Arafat to make the critical decisions to change from the strategy of terror he started 14 months ago to a strategy of peace, to tell his own security forces to stop engaging in terrorist activity or to discipline them.

That is what he said to Prime Minister Rabin back in 1993. He offered us peace of the brave, and ever since then, we're having peace of the grave. We're burying our people every week after every announcement that he makes. So this is the time where he has to prove by deeds, not by words.

HANNA: Many people have died in the past week, more than 50 alone Israelis and Palestinians over the weekend. Thirteen Palestinians have been killed, while Israel carries out what it says operations to arrest those planning acts of terror.

Yet at this stage Mr. Arafat is reaching out a hand. He made that very clear at the end of his speech. Is Israel, despite your skepticism, prepared to take the hand.

GISSIN: We extended our hand all the time. We've extended our hand throughout the 14 months. This is not the first time. It's not as it started now. But Arafat must make the choice right now. Either he really takes the step against terrorism or he finds himself in the trash can with bin Laden and the Taliban. These are the terrorist forces which are history bygone, or he can make history.

He could really move his people, and us together to make peace. But in order to have peace, there has to be a cessation of violence. There has to be a cessation of terrorism. There has to be a cessation of incitement.

All the peace agreements that Israel signed with its Arab neighbors came about with a cease-fire preceding any kind of agreement. So now is the time to do it, and I think he can do it. You see today, Eid Al-Fitr, it was quiet throughout the territories. There's no reason that one day of Eid Al-Fitr can not be extended throughout the whole year.

HANNA: Ra'Anan Gissin, thank you very much indeed for joining us. The spokesman for the Israeli Prime Minister responding to the speech by Mr. Arafat, still skepticism from the Israeli government at this stage, saying that it is still waiting to see action. It is not satisfied with words.

But from Mr. Arafat, a very strong call for an end to terror attacks against Israelis, a very strong call for a resumption of negotiation, and a very strong call for the supremacy of the Palestinian Authority to be observed by the Palestinian people. Back to you.

PHILLIPS: Jerusalem bureau chief Mike Hanna, thank you so much. And right after this break, we're going to come back and get reaction from the White House.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get White House reaction to Arafat's speech. For that, we turn to CNN White House correspondent Major Garrett. Good morning again, Major. MAJOR GARRETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles. There is no immediate reaction here at the White House. Senior officials are still sifting through Mr. Arafat's speech. But I can tell you, based on conversations I've had with senior officials up to now, a couple of things that will stick out in the minds of U.S. officials.

You know, one thing that the United States Government has said, particularly since the violence has surged in the last three or four weeks, is that Mr. Arafat needs to act like a national leader, needs to speak in a language that radiates or conveys to his people that he is the central leader, and that any attempt to undermine peace prospects with Israel through terrorism, through violence is not only an attack on innocent Israeli civilians, but it is an attack on him personally as the leader of the Palestinian movement, and the very efficacy, the very future of the Palestinian movement itself.

And in ways that he has not indicated before, Mr. Arafat said exactly that in this speech. He said that any terrorist organizations that continue attacks against Israel will be seen as trespassing on the Palestinian Authority and would be dealt with, in his words "accordingly."

Now those are probably not the strongest words the White House would have liked to have heard. They probably would have liked to have something more dramatic, more declaratory against terrorism, but nevertheless it is the language of someone who's reminding his people that he is the leader.

One other thing that's worth pointing out, at the very top of the speech, Mr. Arafat said that at the earliest possible moment, there would be local and parliamentary elections throughout a Palestinian State.

That's another thing that has weighed heavily on the minds of U.S. policy makers, that the Palestinian Authority has not moved toward creating for itself a democratic dialog or a democratic orientation, something that gives it less credibility in the eyes of the world and in the eyes of the Israeli government than it would be if it had created a democratic foundation.

U.S. government and policy planners believe a democratic Palestinian movement is one where grievances can be aired and movements and dialog toward the eventual compromises that the Palestinians will have to make if they're going to achieve a deal with Israel, can in fact be discussed.

And until that sort of democratic interaction takes place, U.S. policy planners are very pessimistic about any deal between the Palestinians and the Israelis because there is no acceptance among the Palestinian people that they're going to have to get anything other than 100 percent. That's not going to happen.

So those two things, I think, were crucial for U.S. policy planners, as they sift through this speech -- Miles. O'BRIEN: Major, just quickly before you get away, the special envoy to the Middle East, Anthony Zinni, had been recalled. Does this speech change that decision in any way? Do you expect to see him back in the Middle East soon?

GARRETT: U.S. policy planners are saying don't read too much into Mr. Zinni's return to the United States, but I think it's fair to say if things were going well, if there hadn't been this state of violence, in fact he would still be in the region working with the Israelis and the Palestinians.

He's coming back. He'll be meeting with Secretary of State Powell, briefing the President. They're going to try to find a new means of dealing with the situation, but until there are concrete actions, greater concrete actions by Mr. Arafat to deal with the terrorists within the Palestinian movement, I don't think there's much prospect for open dialog about a cease-fire between the Palestinians and the Israelis. Miles.

O'BRIEN: CNN's Major Garrett at the White House, thank you very much.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com