Jordan: No concession concerning the rights of the refugees

The spokeswoman for the Jordanian government Asmaa Khuder yesterday considered that the statements of the Palestinian President Yasser Arafat to the Israeli daily Haartez over the return back of Palestinian refugees " are not different in substance from the Arab initiative " and that " there is no problem between the position of Jordan and the Palestinian question in this issue."

Khuder added in a press conference that Arafat's statements " were quoted differently but he stressed to abide by the Arab initiative and stressed commitment to solving the problems of the refugees, according to what was agreed upon and supported by international resolutions including UN resolution 194."

Khuder said that there is co-ordination between Jordan and the Palestinian leadership to this effect," adding " I do not think there is a problem on this matter." She continued that Jordan's position concerning the question of the refugees is principled," the position is " the same position of the Palestinian leadership."

She said " the question of the Palestinian refugees and the right of the refugees to return is a right that we officially or the Palestinian leadership can not give up because it is an individual right for the Palestinian refugees. A right supported by international resolutions.."

Arafat said in his interview with Haaretz daily while talking about 4 million Palestinian refugees that not all of them want to return back to their lands from which they were expelled in the framework of a likely agreement."