Sunday, August 1, 2004
Talk continues tough as pressure continues between Arafat and his supporters. First, a group of "gunmen" burst into a meeting of Palestinian legislators and Fatah officials, firing into the air, apparently believing that the meeting was part of an anti-Arafat conspiracy. "Reform" must be tough under these conditions, but then it's not surprising considering all the time Arafat and his sycophants have squandered preaching hate and death rather than working to create a functioning civil society.
The bizarre part? After the shooting is done, the legislators go ask the gunmen, "Can we have our meeting now?"
About 20 armed men broke into the conference on the first day of the weeklong event, firing their weapons into the air and above the stage where speakers were seated.
No one was wounded in the gunfire, but the meeting broke up. Several delegates met with the gunmen to discuss whether the conference could continue.
The gunmen identified themselves as members of the Al Awda Brigades, a small militant group. One of them told the Associated Press they believed the meeting was part of a conspiracy directed against Arafat.
And the other interesting part of this article is that Dahlan is actually showing a little fire. This criticism of Arafat is remarkable. The old lion is getting weak and the pack is closing in. This is what happens when your rule is based on corruption and violence. A pirate captain who can't bring his men the riches they're used to (and the EU has finally been talking about accountability) had best have his grog tasted by the cabin boy before imbibing.
"Arafat is sitting on the corpses and destruction of the Palestinians at a time when they're desperately in need of a new mentality," Dahlan was quoted as saying during the interview, which was held in Jordan.
If Arafat does not carry out real reforms within the PA by August 10, 30,000 Palestinians will demonstrate in the streets of Gaza, Dahlan said.
"What has happened in Gaza is an expression of our demands for reform," he said, in an apparent reference to three weeks of protests in the Strip against decisions made by Arafat.
All of the funds that foreign nations have donated to the Palestinian Authority, a total of $5 billion, "have gone down the drain, and we don't know to where."
Arafat's policies have brought the Palestinians damage, and have brought about a situation in which Palestinians' lives are in "ruin," he was further quoted as saying...
