U.S. President George Bush said Thursday that Israel is keeping its promise to withdraw troops from Palestinian cities and turned up the pressure on Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to crack down on “terrorism.”
"Mr. Arafat did condemn terrorism and now we will hold him into account" and demand that he take action against terrorists, Bush said.
The president assessed the crisis in the Middle East in a meeting with Secretary of State Colin Powell, who returned hours earlier from a mission to the region. Joined by Vice President Dick Cheney, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice and White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card, the president shrugged off criticism that Powell's mission had failed.
"One trip by the secretary of state will not prevent that from happening," Bush said, stressing his efforts to stem violence. "But one trip by the secretary of state laid out the framework and path to achieve peace."
"We will continue to do that," Bush said, according to news agencies.
The president praised Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon as "a man of peace. I'm confident he wants Israel to be able to exist at peace with its neighbor." Bush said he was satisfied that Sharon was acting in good faith.
"History will show that they responded," Bush said. "He gave me a timetable and he met the timetable."
The American leader said he understood why Israel was keeping troops in Bethlehem and in Ramallah. He noted that five suspects in the killing of an Israeli Cabinet minister are believed to be holed up in Arafat's Ramallah headquarters.
"These people are accused of killing a Cabinet official of the Israel government. I can understand why the prime minister wants them brought to justice," he said. "They should be brought to justice if they killed a man in cold blood."
Arab press
Bush’s comments came as Arab newspapers and citizens said on Thursday Powell's regional mission was a failure which dried up the vestiges of U.S. credibility by proving Israel was the tail wagging the U.S. dog.
Rather than securing a ceasefire or forcing Israel to withdraw from reoccupied Palestinian towns, Arabs say Powell's mission gave the Jewish state a green light to proceed as it deems necessary, paving the way for fresh violence.
Saudi newspapers even charged Powell he had acted "like a Jewish rabbi." "Since he set off from Washington to the region over a week ago, the secretary appeared to be ... carrying instructions, not proposals," to the Palestinians, Al-Watan said in an editorial Thursday.
"He acted more like a Jewish rabbi, or the head of a Zionist organization, than like an American diplomat trying to find a solution" to the crisis between Israel and the Palestinians, the daily added.
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Colin Powell arrived in our region as an American minister with the rank of general and left it as a footsoldier of the Israeli...General (Prime Minister) Ariel Sharon," Lebanon's daily as-Safir said in a blistering front-page editorial.
Saudi Arabia’s Al-Madina said all that Powell managed to do was give Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon more time to carry on his "crimes" against the Palestinians. "Let's not fool ourselves. Powell came to the region to give Sharon's plan additional time," the paper wrote.
"Powell's mission has succeeded because Sharon's plan is succeeding ... Occupation forces have not withdrawn and the massacres have continued," it added. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
