Powell exposed to pressures
Regional-USA, Politics, 4/5/2002

The US secretary of state Colin Powell was quoted on Thursday as saying that he was exposed to great pressures because of his position which supports the establishment of a Palestinian state.

This was expressed in a meeting Powell held with the representatives of the Arab and Muslim communities in the USA in which the representatives handed him memorandum calling on the US administration to embark a firmer policy in dealing with the government of Ariel Sharon.

The director of the Islamic- American relations Nuhad Awad said in a statement for the council that Powell stressed to the delegation that he is with the right of the Palestinians to found their independent states on their native soil and that he is trying relentless to make a balance in the positions of the US administration and that he meets huge pressures because of his declared stances which support the foundation of a Palestinian state on the land of Palestine.

Awad said:" we have explained to Powell that the US bias to the Israeli policy and bloody policies will be for the worse on the US and her interests and that all facts reveal to the Israeli crimes and that Sharon is prompted by his hate to the Arabs, and despite this fact the US continues its bias to Israel and this because of the pressure of the Israeli groups in the US on the American administration."

On the other hand, the President of the Arab- American Institute James Zoghbi explained that the first request presented to Powell was the implementation of the recent UN resolutions provided for the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the Palestinian territories and stressed the need of the US efforts to preserve the security of its citizens in the areas- re-occupied by Israel.

The message which was handed over to Powell included the following demands: The US administration not to permit " the internal pressure groups, whose interests represent foreign groups to continue having negative influence on the US foreign policy; The US secretary of state to visit personally the region and to directly conduct the peace talks; the US administration to condemn the Israeli attacks against the Palestinian civilians the same thing it had condemned previously the Palestinian attacks against civilians; Demanding immediate and unconditional pullout of the Israeli forces from the West Bank and Gaza, and the US to back the presence of UN peace keeping forces in the West Bank and Gaza."

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