Mideast’s star hypocrite

Earlier this month, Fatah founder, Palestinian Liberation Organization chairman and Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat wrote an op-ed for the New York Times.

“[W]e seek only what the free world now enjoys and only what Israel insists on for itself: the right to control our own destiny and to take our place among free nations,” he wrote.

If I didn’t know Arafat’s past and actions, I would look at his op-ed and vision as a legitimate goal from an honorable man. But I do know his past and present actions and the rhetoric he spits out on a daily basis to the Palestinian people.

This past week, Arafat led a rally in Ramallah, chanting, “Millions of martyrs marching to Jerusalem.” He promised to take Jerusalem soon, saying, “We will make the lives of the infidels hell.” Does this sound like the same man who wrote the New York Times piece? Certainly not.

The man is a living contradiction. He says one thing and does another; he does one thing and says another. He writes an op-ed stating his “Palestinian Vision for Peace,” but he founded a guerilla-warfare-type terrorist organization. He even carried a gun while addressing the U.N. General Assembly.

Writing on the Oslo Accord, Arafat wrote, “Since 1993, the Palestinian people have endured a doubling of Israeli settlers.” Arafat speaks of Oslo often; how dare he accuse Israel of expansion and violating Oslo when he has violated the agreement too many times to count?

The Interim Agreement, in conjunction with the Oslo Accord, requires the Palestinian Police Force not to exceed 30,000, but the PA police have exceeded 50,000. In addition, under the Oslo Declaration of Principles, Arafat agreed to incarcerate, prosecute and punish terrorists, but he has failed to do so. At best, he apprehends terrorists and secretly releases them weeks later. In fact, just this week, according to Debka File, the PA released all jailed terrorists in the West Bank and Gaza.

Arafat is the definition of hypocritical. He speaks for peace and Palestinian statehood in English, but cries for battle in Arabic. Late last year, the Israeli government was moving forward and willing to work toward a Palestinian State, but days later another attack came on the Israeli people.

Arafat, on numerous occasions, has shown that he can crack down on terrorists and stop all terrorist attacks. He can eradicate terror with a 50,000-man police force, but he does not want to.

For the past decade, we have been telling Arafat, “We will take you out of power or you have to turn around 100 percent.” He then says he will and does for a few weeks, but then releases all terrorists. He has been stalling for the past 10 years.

Why do we continue to ask him to turn around when he obviously has no intention of doing so? It’s because he hides behind his own words in a sense that he writes visions for peace, but doesn’t want it. He does and says just enough to get the United States from taking any punitive action against him.

This man has far more than nine lives. You’re only supposed to get a second chance once; it’s time to take him out of power. He is a terrorist and criminal, plain and simple, and it’s time for the president to realize that. Arafat is not someone you can negotiate with; you can’t negotiate with terrorists, remember?

According to reports, Israel Defense Minister Binyamin ben Eliezer quoted Vice President Cheney as saying, “As far as I’m concerned, you can even hang him [Arafat],” and similar comments from Donald Rumsfeld. Cheney and Condoleezza Rice also said that Arafat is a “waste of time.”

Arafat is a waste of time, and President Bush should also realize this.

President Bush, what if your citizens were killed while going home from work? What if your citizens were murdered by terrorists while shopping? And what if your citizens were killed while celebrating a bat mitzvah reception and those terrorists were protected by a neighboring country?

I believe you would take action against them, and it’s time for you to let Israel do just that. On Sept. 11, we had just a taste of what goes on in Israel everyday. Maybe you should put yourself in Prime Minister Sharon’s shoes.

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