Communicated by the Israel Government Press Office, February 2, 1998
Following is a brief assessment of the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) record
on compliance with its commitments under the October 23, 1998 Wye River
Memorandum:
- Fighting Terrorism=== Obligation ===
The Wye agreement requires the PA to “take all measures necessary in order
to prevent acts of terrorism” and to wage a “comprehensive… continuous
and constant” campaign against the “terrorists, the terror support
structure, and the environment conducive to the support of terror.” The PA
must also submit a security work plan detailing the measures they intend to
take against terror organizations.=== Status of Compliance ===
The PA has refused to wage a comprehensive campaign against terror groups
and their infrastructure:* No steps have been taken to disarm and disband terror groups such as
Hamas and Islamic Jihad. PA Minister and senior Palestinian negotiator Dr.
Nabil Shaath recently acknowledged, “There are no provisions for
dismembering Hamas or the Islamic resistance or their offices… or any of
the things Israel considered the infrastructure of terrorism.” (quoted in
the Palestinian weekly The Jerusalem Times, December 18, 1998).* The PA submitted only a partial security work plan for November lacking
in detail, and they failed to submit a work plan for December.* Terrorists detained by the Palestinian police are rarely interrogated on
matters relating to Israel, and little effort is made to glean information
from them.* In recent weeks, some 60 terrorists have been released from prison by the
PA, including senior members of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, as well as
terrorists who have been involved in attacks in which Israelis and
Americans were killed. Among those released: Ziad Abu al-Ghal, head of the
Islamic Jihad’s military wing in Gaza; Mehdi Inbatawi, one of Islamic
Jihad’s leading figures in Judea and Samaria; Abdallah Shami, an Islamic
Jihad leader in Gaza who publicly called for the murder of President
Clinton prior to the latter’s December 1998 visit to the region; Hassam
Alimani, a senior Hamas terrorist and arms dealer; and Jihad Suwiti, a
senior Hamas terrorist who served as deputy to Hassan Salameh, the
mastermind of the February-March 1996 wave of suicide bombings in Israel.* The PA has re-instituted its “revolving door” policy of detaining
terrorists for brief periods, only to release them quietly shortly thereafter.Conclusion: The PA is violating its obligation to combat terror and detain
fugitives. - Confiscation of Illegal Weapons=== Obligation ===
The Wye agreement obligates the PA to establish a legal framework for the
collection of illegal weapons held by civilians and to implement a
comprehensive campaign to confiscate such weapons. The PA agreed that the
Israeli-Palestinian Joint Security Committee would convene to formulate the
modalities for issuing weapons licenses to civilians. Additionally, the PA
must collect and dispose of weapons used by its own security forces which
are prohibited by the Oslo Accords.=== Status of Compliance ===
The PA did issue a decree on the subject of weapons possession, but:
* There has been no campaign undertaken to confiscate illegal weapons. Tens
of thousands of unlicensed arms and munitions are circulating freely in
PA-controlled areas, and uncontrolled smuggling and illicit manufacturing
have added to the numbers.* The PA has refused to discuss the modalities for issuing weapons licenses
in the Joint Security Committee with Israel.* The Palestinian security forces possess various weapons prohibited by the
accords such as mortars, land-mines and grenade launchers, and the PA has
refused to dispose of them.* The PA also has quantities of weapons exceeding the limits permitted by
the agreements.Conclusion: PA is violating its obligations regarding the confiscation of
illegal weapons. - Reducing the Size of the Palestinian Police=== Obligation ===
The Wye agreement requires the PA to reduce the size of its police force to
the number permitted under the Oslo Accords and to transfer to Israel a
list of recruits. Under Oslo, the PA is permitted to deploy no more than
30,000 policemen in the areas under its control.=== Status of Compliance ===
* The PA has refused to transfer the list of its police recruits to Israel,
and it continues to employ dozens of Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists as
policemen.* At least 12 wanted fugitives, including several who have killed American
and Israeli citizens, are known to be serving in the Palestinian Police.* By its own admission, the PA has some 40,000 policemen on its payroll,
which is 10,000 over the limit under the accords.Conclusion: PA is violating its obligations regarding the size of the
Palestinian police. - Inciting Violence and Organizing Riots=== Obligation ===
The Wye agreement requires the PA to “take all measures necessary in order
to prevent acts of terrorism, crime and hostilities directed against the
Israeli side… and to prevent incitement.”=== Status of Compliance ===
In November and December 1998, Yasser Arafat’s Fatah faction of the PLO
planned and organized mass riots in Judea, Samaria and Gaza to pressure
Israel to release Palestinian terrorists from prison. Rioters clashed with
Israeli security forces and attacked Israeli civilians. One of these riots
evolved into a near-lynching of an Israeli soldier, a passerby in the area.
Senior Palestinian leaders have openly called for the use of violence
against Israel, as the following examples illustrate:* On January 24, 1999, Fatah Central Committee member Saher Habash
delivered a speech in the name of Chairman Arafat in which he declared,
“The agreements will not liberate the land. Every centimeter requires a
struggle, and the land requires blood… We must continue the struggle for
which the martyrs fell…” (quoted in the official PA newspaper, Al-Hayat
Al-Jadeeda, January 25, 1999)* On January 11, 1999, official Palestinian Authority television broadcast
a 4-year old girl chanting, “My rights – I shall taken them. I shall take
them with a machine gun and a knife. I shall return soon…”* On December 1, 1998, Abu Ala, the speaker of the Palestinian parliament,
told a rally of Palestinians: “The leadership that threw stones is ready to
return and use stones to free the people and the land.” (quoted in The New
York Times, December 3, 1998) The next day, a Palestinian lynch mob
attacked an Israeli vehicle near Ramallah, stoning the car and nearly
killing its passengers.* On November 15, 1998, Yasser Arafat addressed a rally in Ramallah, where
he said, “Our rifles are ready and we are ready to raise them again if
anyone tries to prevent us from praying in holy Jerusalem… There are
agreements and they better be carried out, because the ‘generals of the
stones’ are ready…” (quoted in the Palestinian
daily Al-Ayyam, November 16, 1998)Conclusion: The PA is violating its obligation to prevent anti-Israel
incitement and violence. - General Incitement and Hostile Propaganda=== Obligation ===
The Wye agreement obligates the PA to issue a decree prohibiting incitement
and to establish a mechanism which would “act systematically against all
expressions or threats of violence or terror.”=== Status of Compliance ===
On November 19, 1998, the PA published a decree against incitement. The
decree contains inconsistencies and makes no reference to terrorism, as
required by the Wye agreement. The PA has failed to implement the decree.
Senior Palestinian officials and the Palestinian media continue to engage
in anti-Semitic and anti-Israel incitement, as the following examples
illustrate:* On December 25, 1998, PA Minister for Refugee Affairs Abdallah Hourani
said he expects, and is looking forward to, the demise of the State of
Israel. He told the Palestinian weekly The Jerusalem Times: “I don’t see
Israel surviving much longer and people shouldn’t be quick to lose faith
regardless of the difficulties, because I can’t imagine a country’s rise
and fall taking only 50 years. People have to be patient… Our day is
coming. Crusaders ruled our land for 242 years, and Israel is like a tree
planted in improper soil. It will never thrive.”* A November 7, 1998 article in the official PA newspaper Al-Hayat
Al-Jadeeda, said, “Corruption is part of the nature of the Jews… the Jews
were subjected to losses and expulsion as a result of their wickedness and
their despicable acts.”* A November 3, 1998 religious program broadcast on official Palestinian
Authority television asserted, “the Jews are the seed of Satan and the
devils…. The Jews do not believe in God…They have distorted the faith
and exchanged the gift of God for heresy, rebellion and prostitution, and
distorted the Torah….”Conclusion: The PA is violating its obligation to halt incitement and
hostile propaganda. - Bilateral Security Cooperation with Israel=== Obligation ===
The Wye agreement requires the PA to engage in “full bilateral security
cooperation” with Israel that is “continuous, intensive and comprehensive”.=== Status of Compliance ===
The PA has refused to allow its security services to cooperate fully with
Israel. The cooperation that does exist is spotty. The PA has restricted
itself to primarily responding to Israeli tips on planned terrorist actions
and it refrains from volunteering intelligence, sharing information, taking
the initiative against the terror infrastructure and interrogating detainees.Conclusion: The PA is violating its obligation to maintain full bilateral
security cooperation with Israel. - Refraining from Unilateral Measures=== Obligation ===
The Wye agreement reaffirms the commitment undertaken in the Oslo accords
to refrain from steps that would alter the status of Judea, Samaria and
Gaza (such as a declaration of statehood or annexation). Both sides are
obligated to negotiate the final disposition of the territories.=== Status of Compliance ===
Palestinian leaders have repeatedly stated their intention to unilaterally
declare a Palestinian state on May 4, 1999, when the Interim Period ends.
Addressing a rally in Nablus on November 14, 1998, Yasser Arafat said, “We
will declare our independent state on May 4, 1999 with Jerusalem as its
capital, yes Jerusalem, the eternal capital of our state, whether they like
it or not. Now we are on our land and we are regaining this holy land inch
by inch until we set up our state in 1999.”Conclusion: The PA is violating the Wye agreement by threatening to adopt
unilateral measures. - Amending the Palestinian Charter=== Obligation ===
The Wye agreement required the PA to convene the Palestinian National
Council (PNC) and other Palestinian bodies to reaffirm the letter sent by
Chairman Arafat to President Clinton detailing the changes to the PLO
Charter which called for Israel’s destruction.=== Status of Compliance ===
On December 14, 1998, in the presence of President Clinton, the PNC and
other bodies reaffirmed Chairman Arafat’s letter by a show of hands.Conclusion: The PA fulfilled its Wye agreement obligation regarding the
Palestinian Charter. - Reactivating the Interim Committees=== Obligation ===
The Wye agreement provided that Israel and the PA would reactivate the
standing committees established by the Oslo Accord to address various issues.=== Status of Compliance ===
Several of the committees have been meeting on a regular basis, but the PA
has refused to convene the Joint Legal Committee and the Standing
Cooperation Committee despite repeated Israeli requests.Conclusion: The PA is violating its obligation to convene the Interim
Committees.
===Israeli Obligations ===
* Israel completed protocol on Gaza airport on 20 November 1998. Airport
opened.
* Israel opened Karni industrial zone in Gaza on 14 December 1998.
* Israel implemented first stage of further redeployment (total of 491.4
square kilometers transferred).
* Israel ready to complete opening of southern route of Safe Passage.
* Israel has conducted eight rounds of negotiations on Gaza port.
* Israel has designed a team for the People-to-People Committee. PA refuses
to convene.
* Israel has requested convening the Legal Committee. PA has not responded
to Israeli request to convene.
* Israel has convened the Joint Economic Committee (Israel agreed to a
Palestinian request for refund of purchase tax on Israeli products).
PA violations in territories down, but more serious
By Margot Dudkevitch, Jerusalem Post, 2 February 1999
JERUSALEM – Violations of the Oslo Accords by the Palestinian
Police decreased by 50 percent last year, but the nature of the
violations was far more serious, Judea and Samaria police chief
Cmdr. Yitzhak Aharonovitch told reporters yesterday.
He noted that there were some 211 violations, compared with
394 in 1997. The majority of violations related to detaining and
beating Israeli citizens, whose property and documents were
often confiscated, he said.
Summing up police activity for 1998, Aharonovitch noted that the
number of weapons stolen from settlements had doubled, and
attributed this to the tendency of residents to leave their homes
unlocked.
Police, said Aharonovitch, are maintaining a high state of alert in
anticipation of the possible declaration of Palestinian statehood
in May. He said specific measures undertaken include special
training, plans to bullet-proof police vehicles, and a possible
increase in manpower.
There was a 15 percent increase in the number of riots by settlers
in 1998, but a noticeable decrease in the Hebron area.
Police have invested heavily in efforts to curtail car theft.
Between 500 and 700 cars are stolen every week, the majority of
them stripped in Judea and Samaria. During 1998, police carried
out over 140 operations, with a total of 11,981 police, border
policemen and IDF troops participating in them, concentrated
mainly in Samaria.
During routine and special operations, police recovered 797
stolen cars, seven motorcycles, 12 tractors, 392 car computers,
and 1321 engines and arrested 861 suspects. Aharonovitch said
in many cases Palestinian security officials were found to be
involved in organized car theft.
The Palestinian Police returned 681 stolen cars in 1998, and so
far this year approximately 80 cars were returned from Ramallah
and Jenin.
Cooperation with the Palestinian security officials regarding
stolen cars is not productive, although Israel hands over
information, including the whereabouts of chop shops, noted
Aharonovitch. The exception, he pointed out, is Palestinian
Preventive Security chief Jibril Rajoub, who has provided
valuable cooperation both in the recovery of stolen cars and in
seeking fugitives and murder suspects.
Aharonovitch also said police are extremely concerned about
hikers visiting the Judean Desert who fail to contact the
authorities to find out if conditions are suitable. Often such hikers
are reported missing, necessitating expensive searches.
Aharonovitch urged the public to behave more responsibly.
Netanyahu insists PA released terrorist bombers
By Danna Harman, Jerusalem Post, 2 February 1999
JERUSALEM – Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu
challenged the CIA yesterday to disprove his claim that the
Palestinians recently released Islamic militants involved in the
bombing deaths of five American citizens in Israel.
“I suggest we invite the representative of the CIA to a joint news
conference and I’d like to hear what he has to say publicly,” said
Netanyahu at a press conference, responding to a report on Army
Radio which claimed the CIA’s representative in the region had
adopted the Palestinian position that no suspected murderers
had been released.
“In any case we have our own information, it is very solid,”
Netanyahu said.
A spokesman for the US Embassy in Israel said that the CIA has
not taken, and has no intention of taking, any public position on
the matter, but admitted that the “US government has no firm
information linking the individuals to
the murders of the American citizens.”
The spokesman added that the administration was ” seeking to
obtain clarifications from both sides.”
Palestinian officials have vehemently denied the charges levelled
by the government to the effect that some 21 Palestinian
murderers and murder accomplices were released last month.
Several Palestinian officials suggested that Israel was trying to
discredit their compliance with the Wye River peace accord the
same week that US President Bill Clinton and Palestinian
Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat are to meet and attend the
National Prayer Breakfast together.
Israeli UN Ambassador Dori Gold, who was also invited to attend
the Thursday breakfast, turned down the invitation because the
“Arafat invitation has been exploited politically,” Netanyahu’s
communications director David Bar-Illan said.
Foreign Minister Ariel Sharon’s office confirmed reports that Meir
Dagan, Netanyahu’s adviser on terrorism, and Tomer Orni, a
senior Sharon aide who heads the Palestinian-Israeli interim
committee steering team, were dispatched to Washington last
week to persuade the United States that the Palestinians, not the
Israelis, are violating the Wye River peace accord.
However, Bar-Illan stressed that Orni and Dagan had planned the
trip before the government came out with its findings on the
released murder suspects, and that they were, in no way, trying to
scuttle the Clinton-Arafat meeting.
“We are not trying to torpedo anything, only to induce the Palestinian
Authority to fulfill its commitments,” he said.
