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Embassy Briefing
April 19, 2002
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The Visit of US Secretary of State Powell
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US Secretary of State Powell has shown understanding regarding
Israel's position. Israel and the United States share a
common view concerning the measures to be taken to restore
calm:
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the terrorism and violence must be stopped;
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the diplomatic process should be renewed, through
the implementation of the Zinni, Tenet and Mitchell
formulas which Israel accepted and the Palestinians
rejected.
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Israel has submitted a timetable to US Secretary of State
Powell regarding the pullout of the IDF from the Palestinian
towns. Israel intends to withdraw from the PA areas it entered
during Operation Defensive Shield within a week. The pullback
is being implemented in keeping with a request from the
US Administration, and follows the withdrawal from the cities
of Tulkarm and Kalkilya and dozens Palestinian villages.
The pullback from Bethlehem and Ramallah will be implemented
when solutions can be found to their problematic situations.
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The withdrawal from Palestinian towns is being implemented,
now that the goals of Operation Defensive Shield have been
accomplished. The Palestinian terrorist infrastructure has
suffered a severe blow, and many of the wanted terrorists
have been arrested. In addition, the IDF have captured a
large quantity of arms and ammunition, while bomb factories
have been exposed and destroyed.
- The US Secretary of State relayed President Bush's messages
to senior officials in Syria and Lebanon regarding the need
to restore calm on the northern border of Israel. It appears
that Secretary of State Powell has succeeded in this mission.
Excerpts
of President George W. Bush’s Remarks
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The Situation in the Territories
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Bethlehem: The terrorists are still holding many
hostages in the Church of the Nativity. Israel considers
all holy places as sacrosanct and inviolable and will make
every effort to resolve this problem through negotiations,
rather than the use of force. Unfortunately, the Palestinians
are holding up the negotiations on this issue and are cynically
exploiting the distress of their hostages in the Church.
link
to UNHOLY ASYLUM video clip
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Jenin: No matter how many times you repeat Palestinian
lies, the facts remain the same. There was no massacre in
Jenin. All the evidence shows there was a battle with armed
terrorists not a 'massacre' of unarmed civilians. Throughout
the battle, we evacuated as many civilians as we could;
but the terrorists forced many to stay on as human shields.
The terrorists, not us, chose the battlefield; they, not
us, hid behind civilians; they, not us, wired the homes
and alleys with explosives; and they, not us, refused to
evacuate the wounded and bury the dead. Not only were 23
soldiers killed, but after the battle, the terrorists weren't
afraid to surrender. How can anyone claim that's a massacre?
Throughout the battle, Israel extended aid. We sent generators
to Jenin's hospitals and food, fuel and goods to its population.
The PA rejected our blood donations just because we're Jews;
So Israel had to arrange for an airlift of blood from Jordan
Aside from the booby-trapped bodies found in the camp, many
of the terrorists killed were wearing explosive belts that
they didn't have time to detonate. The reports of destruction
in the refugee camp have been exaggerated out of all proportion.
Most of the refugee camp has been left untouched, and damage
is concentrated in the area of the fierce battle between
the IDF and the terrorists.
Moshe Fox
Minister of Public Affairs
Embassy of Israel, Washington DC
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