Two days later, U.S. president George Bush, at a joint press conference with Jordanian king Abdullah II at Camp David, said that “Prime Minister Abbas was undermined at all turns by the old order—that meant Mr. Arafat.” Bush was referring to the September 6 resignation of the PA’s former prime minister Mahmoud Abbas, who had Washington’s approval.

“That’s why we are now stalled,” Bush added, referring to the U.S- brokered “road map for peace” in the Middle East, which he had signed earlier in Aqaba, Jordan, along with Abbas and Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon. The plan is another attempt to stifle the Palestinian national liberation struggle. It promises a Palestinian state in 2005 on a patchwork of land in the occupied territories. In exchange, it demands that the Palestinian Authority clamp down on those organizing suicide bombings and other attacks against Isreali targets and put together a leadership to Washington’s liking.

Promoting this drive by the U.S. rulers, Bush continued, “Hopefully, at some point in time, a leadership of the Palestinian Authority will emerge which will then commit itself 100 percent to fighting terror.”

U.S. ambassador to the UN John Negroponte said that the Security Council resolution lacked a “robust condemnation” of the Palestinian groups Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades—all on Washington’s “terrorist” list.

A September 19 emergency session of the UN General Assembly passed a resolution similar to the one Washington had vetoed in the Security Council. Only the governments of the United States, Israel, Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands voted against the proposal, which passed with 133 votes in favor and 15 abstaintions.

The next day, more than 1,000 Palestinians turned out in the West Bank cities of Hebron and Bethlehem to protest the Israeli threats against Arafat. At the same time, thousands of Israelis marched to the defense ministry to protest Tel Aviv’s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza.

The Israeli cabinet had announced September 11 that it would “act to remove” Arafat. Israeli vice prime minister Ehud Olmert told Israel radio, “The question is: How are we going to do it? Expulsion is certainly one of the options, and killing is also one of the options.” A day later, Israeli foreign minister Silvan Shalom said that killing Arafat was “not the official policy of the Israeli government.”

Ahmed Qurie, the new Palestinian prime minister, called Bush’s charges against Arafat “regrettable and harmful.” Tel Aviv insists that the Palestinian Authority crack down on Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades. In response, Qurie and other Palestinian officials called for a ceasefire, which Tel Aviv rejected. Israeli defense minister Shaul Mofaz, among those who favor deporting Arafat, said Qurie could win Tel Aviv’s collaboration only by going after Hamas and other groups.

On September 18, 13 Palestinians were wounded, following a firefight between PA security forces and Hamas militants. Palestinian officials accused Hamas of burning down a police station, attacking it with grenades, and kidnapping a high-ranking PA security official. A statement from the Palestinian interior ministry said seven members of Hamas had been arrested. The ministry is headed by Muhammad Dahlan, whom Abbas appointed before his resignation. Hamas accused Dahlan of provoking a fight to undermine efforts by Qurie to form a new cabinet, which may include a Hamas supporter.

In recent weeks, Tel Aviv has stepped up its efforts to kill Hamas leaders. On September 16, Israeli tanks surrounded the West Bank home of Majid Abu Dosh, killing Dosh as he attempted to leave. As is customary, the Israeli military then demolished Dosh’s home with bulldozers. The Israeli army conducted its largest raid into the Gaza Strip September 18, killing Hamas member Jihad Abu Shwairah. The West Bank city of Jenin was also put under a curfew.

Over the last month, Israeli forces have killed 13 members of Hamas and at least six civilians in Tel Aviv’s campaign to destroy the group, including a failed attempt September 6 to murder Hamas founder Sheik Ahmed Yassin.  
 
 
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