On the meeting between al-Assad, Arafat
Former chairman of the Palestinian National Council Khaled al-Fahoum has announced that it was agreed to convene a meeting between President Bashar al-Assad and the chairman of the Palestinian Authority Yasser Arafat, noting that this meeting might be held by March 27 either in Damascus or in Amman, noting that a high ranking delegation will accompany Arafat.
In a statement to the Kuwaiti daily al-Rai al-Aam issued on Tuesday, al-Fahoum said that Arafat's commitment not to give concessions during the negotiations he held with the Israelis in the past phase was the main reason which pushed to defining a date for the meeting between President al-Assad and Arafat in Damascus prior to convening the Arab Summit.
Al-Fahoum noted that Arafat whose relations with Syria was characterized by misunderstanding has succeeded in eliminating the past after it was assured that he ( Arafat) did not violate the question of Palestine neither in "Sharm al- Sheikh"(negotiations) nor in "Taba" (negotiations) and that he stayed committed to the five Palestinian principles represented in adherence to the UN Security Council resolutions 242 and 338 and resolution no. 194 pertinent to the rights of the Palestinians to repatriation, clinging to the establishment of the Palestinian state with Jerusalem as a capital, the continuity of the Intifada and the need of continued coordination between Syria and the PLO.
He said that talks between the two sides will also deal with continued coordination in order to maintain steadfastness in the face of the "Israeli military junta represented in the government of Sharon and its generals."
On the other hand, the paper quoted Palestinian sources in Damascus as saying that Israel's attempts to create an atmosphere of concern and unrest among the Palestinians towards the idea that Syria will sign an agreement with Israel and will leave the Palestinians to their own fate and also give up its closeness with Iraq, aims at foiling rapprochement between Damascus and each of the Palestinians and the Iraqis and an attempt to split the Arab rank.