The Bush administration has acknowledged that the
Palestinian Authority has violated its pledge not to engage in terrorism but
has suspended any sanctions against the regime of Yasser Arafat.
U.S. officials said the presidential decision came after months of
discussion between the State Department and Congress over Washington's
response to PA and Fatah documents relayed by Israel to the United States
that cited funding to a range of groups that attacked Israeli civilians. The
documents were captured by Israel during Operation Defensive Shield in the
West Bank in April, Middle East Newsline reported.
"The Palestinian documents were never disputed by the administration,"
an
official said. "The problem was that the minute you acknowledge that the PA
and [PA Chairman Yasser] Arafat was funding terrorism then you have to cut
relations with all of them. Then, there's nobody to talk to and you're back
to square one."
In a White House announcement on Monday Bush ordered the suspension
of the sanctions and downgrade in relations contained in Foreign Relations
Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003. The president cited national security
concerns.
"Furthermore, I hereby determine that it is in the national security
interest of the United States to waive that sanction, pursuant to section
604 of the act," Bush said in a memorandum to Secretary of State Colin
Powell. "This waiver shall be effective for a period of 180 days from the
date hereof or until such time as the next report required by section 603 of
the act is transmitted to the Congress, whichever is later."
Last month, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay said Arafat has established
what he called a "holding company" for terrorists. In a Nov. 24 speech in a
San Antonio, Texas church, DeLay called on the administration to cite what
he termed terrorist groups and their state sponsors in the Middle East.
"Arafat agreed to resolve outstanding issues through negotiation," DeLay
said. "He committed Palestinians to a peaceful resolution. He renounced the
use of terrorism. And he promised to assume responsibility over all the
elements of the PLO. He agreed to crack down on terrorism. But since Oslo,
Arafat's PA has been nothing more than a holding company for terrorist
subsidiaries."
The sanctions under Section 603 of the Foreign Relations Authorization
Act call for the denial of visas to PLO and PA officials as well as the
downgrade in the status of the PLO office in the United States to that prior
to the Oslo accords in 1993. This means that the only PLO institution
allowed to operate would be the Palestinian Information Office in
Washington.
In addition, the sanctions call for the United States to designate the
PLO, Fatah and the PA as foreign terrorist organizations. The designation
would include Arafat's praetorian guard Force 17. In addition, the United
States would be banned from providing anything other than humanitarian
assistance to the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
At the United Nations, the United States voted for the first time
against a General Assembly resolution that condemned the Israeli annexation
of eastern Jerusalem. It was the first time in years that Washington opposed
the resolution rather than abstaining.
