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CNN Sunday Morning
Israeli Cabinet Takes Steps; Bush Keeps Eye on Middle East
Aired April 28, 2002 - 11:01 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.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now to the Middle East, where the Israeli cabinet has taken steps on two controversial issues. Is it one step forward and one step back? An explanation now from CNN's Jerrold Kessel in Jerusalem. Hi there, Jerrold.
JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredricka, and indeed we have had intense diplomatic movement. Whether it means diplomatic moves ahead, we should wait and see and you're absolutely right, it could be one yes and one not yet, and another no at the moment, because three standoff situations we'll recall, both around Yasser Arafat's headquarters in Ramallah, what to do with the Palestinian leader and the isolation in which Ariel Sharon, Israel's Prime Minister has imposed for more than a month now on the Palestinian Leader.
That standoff at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and now the standoff between Israel and the United Nations with regard to the fact-finding probe into what happened in the Jenin Refugee Camp during Israel's major incursion and military sweep against terror sources.
Well, first of all with regard to the latest news on Bethlehem, no progress at all. There was a major meeting held this afternoon, the first in three days between Palestinian and Israeli negotiators. No breakthrough yet on trying to end that siege at the Church of the Nativity.
We understand a top Palestinian negotiator saying afterwards, "well, we've reached agreement on the principles of how to disagree." That's a lot of diplomatic double speak for really saying they haven't reached agreement yet on how to end that standoff.
What the Israelis have been asking is for the six men, primarily six most wanted men in that standoff in the Church of the Nativity to be put on trial in Israel or to be expelled from the country. Palestinians saying at most they want them to be tried before Palestinian courts in Gaza. That standoff remains intact, but there was movement in the Israeli government with respect to Yasser Arafat's future in Ramallah.
As you rightly say, President Bush made the initiative. This is what changed things when he sent a message, spoke to Prime Minister Sharon yesterday by telephone. The Israeli Prime Minister apprised his cabinet of the American proposal, which was that American and British personnel would or should stand guard over six Palestinians who Israel wants to try.
They are a part of the people holed up in Yasser Arafat's compound and has been the cause for Israel saying they're maintaining that siege on Yasser Arafat.
Now the Israeli cabinet by a 17-8 vote decided to endorse what Prime Minister Sharon's recommendation to accept President Bush's proposal and this will now go further in further discussions, perhaps even a trip from Mr. Sharon to meet with the President at the White House within the coming week.
No word from the Palestinians yet on their position with regard to this U.S. proposal, but the Palestinians very angry with another Israeli position adopted at the cabinet today.
The Israelis continuing to postpone the arrival of that U.N. fact-finding mission with regard to the Jenin Refugee Camp; the Israelis saying bluntly the terms have not yet been made appropriate. They are not yet ripe for the beginning of that U.N. probe.
The Israelis objecting to the U.N. insistence that it will be able to invite anybody to be witnesses to what happened in the camp, and the Israelis saying no, only they will send their Israeli, whom they believe Israel should be giving evidence to that U.N. team in respect of what happened in Jenin.
So, for the moment, we understand from the U.N. team in Geneva, that they remain just there. They will not be coming down to Israel yet and that they remain holed up in their waiting, cooling their heels, to await word from Kofi Annan on what the U.N. should do next.
That standoff continuing, but perhaps a way open for the Americans to come in in a way to relieve that siege on Yasser Arafat. Plenty of interesting diplomatic developments, plenty of maneuvering, no clear direction quite yet. Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks very much. We'll be keeping tabs on that, Jerrold Kessel from Jerusalem.
President Bush is keeping an eye on the developments in the Middle East from his ranch in Crawford, Texas, and that's where we find our John King.
JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Fredricka. We are learning more details about this U.S. proposal. Senior administration officials telling CNN that President Bush quietly, the White House has not even publicly announced this call yet, spoke to the Israeli Prime Minister for ten minutes yesterday and put on the table this proposal, which the Israeli cabinet has now accepted.
It would work like this. U.S. and British monitors, not troops but monitors, security experts would agree to supervise the jailing of those Palestinian suspects, six of them now being held in Mr. Arafat's compound in Ramallah. In exchange, the Israelis would withdraw their troops from Ramallah and allow Mr. Arafat to travel freely within the Palestinian territories.
U.S. officials viewing this as the potential breakthrough to the standoff in Ramallah; they are applauding the Israeli cabinet's acceptance of this plan, and they say the ball now is in Mr. Arafat's court. In the words of one senior U.S. official, Mr. Arafat has said he wants the Israeli troops to leave. This plan would do that. We hope he will not miss this opportunity.
U.S. officials saying they hope to have an answer from the Palestinians quite soon. Again, U.S. and British monitors would supervise the jailing of those Palestinian suspects and Israel would agree to immediately then pull its troops out of Ramallah and allow Mr. Arafat to travel again, for the first time since March. Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And, John, when does the U.S. want that to happen? Of course, we still have to hear from the Palestinians and their response, but is there a timetable that the U.S. and the British monitors are looking for?
KING: One senior official said the U.S. and the British could move almost immediately, that they have been discussing this behind the scenes for a period of several weeks now, and that they could get those security experts into the region quite quickly.
Obviously, the President has been calling for three weeks now, and as recently as this weekend, on Israel to fully withdraw its troops. U.S. officials say this could be a breakthrough. Again, if the Palestinians now accept it, it could resolve the Ramallah standoff within a matter of days.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks very much, John King reporting from Crawford, Texas, traveling with the President.
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