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TODAY o February 24, 2001
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Palestinians distrust Powell
Architect of Gulf War is bound to encounter skepticism about his evenhandedness
among those who feel solidarity with Iraq.
Larry Kaplow & Saeed Ahmed - Staff
Sunday, February 24, 2001
Ramallah, West Bank --- When Secretary of State Colin Powell arrives in the Middle East today, his
efforts to present himself as an impartial mediator probably will meet considerable skepticism.
Powell, after all, has some history in the region. As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff 10 years
ago, he oversaw the U.S. military during the Gulf War against Iraq.
That is something many Palestinians here remember --- and resent.
Palestinians are already furious at the United States for supporting Israel. Friday, on the eve of
Powell's arrival, protesters in Ramallah burned pictures of him and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak.
Even people who did not participate in the protest are well aware of Powell's past. Mohammed Salah,
28, said he has been unemployed during the five months of fighting between Palestinians and Israeli
troops.
So he has had plenty of time to read the papers. And to develop feelings about Powell.
"One who is ready to kill Iraqis will not hesitate to kill Palestinians," he said.
Palestinians and Israelis are forming markedly different opinions about America's new secretary of
state.
Among Palestinians, already distrustful of the U.S. role in the region, Powell's leadership of the
bombardment of Iraq is a stigma he may never overcome.
For Israelis, the new Bush administration, including Powell, symbolizes change. Bill Clinton engaged
in intense mediation as president, and many Israelis view that approach as having failed. They await a
Bush alternative.
Powell's itinerary includes separate meetings in Israel with Barak, Israel's outgoing prime minister,
and Prime Minister-elect Ariel Sharon. He also will visit Gaza City to talk with Palestinian leader Yasser
Arafat.
Powell comes to the region during particularly tense and violent times.
The election of Sharon, a former general with a reputation for recklessness, has some people
concerned that bloodshed may increase. Already, more than 400 people, the vast majority Palestinians,
have been killed in the last five months.
Israelis will ask Powell to pressure Arafat to end Palestinian unrest.
Arafat, in turn, probably will ask Powell to help get peace talks started again and to condemn the
heavy Israeli force used in the fighting.
Palestinians are not the only ones aware of Powell's role in the Gulf War. Israelis are news addicts,
too.
"He is a man of war. That is positive," David Swissa, 45, said as he drank coffee in the food court of
Jerusalem's largest mall. "In this cruel world right now, it is good to deter people from doing bad things."
The divergent opinions are reflected among Arabs and Jews in the United States.
Arab-Americans, who voted mostly for Bush after he condemned racial profiling of them during the
campaign, initially viewed the new administration with hope. Many were optimistic that the Palestinian
issue would get what they see as a fair hearing after eight years of presidential micromanagement that
they feel yielded few results.
But many Arab-Americans say they now doubt much will be accomplished when Powell sits down
Sunday with Sharon.
"There was a feeling in the Arab community that Bush is not beholden to the Israel lobby, as Clinton
was," said Rashid Khalidi, president of the pro-Arab American Committee on Jerusalem. "Turns out, the
honeymoon was rather short."
Arab-Americans say there is plenty to be pessimistic about: the sale to Israel of attack helicopters of
the type used in the killings of Palestinian activists; the nomination as deputy secretary of defense of Paul
Wolfowitz, who intensified military and intelligence relations with Israel during the Reagan
administration; and the stepping-up of air strikes against Iraq.
But if Arab-Americans are losing faith in the new president's Middle East policy, many American
Jews --- who lamented the breakdown of the peace process despite the broadest concessions ever to
Palestinians --- have found reason to be hopeful.
With new heads of state in both Israel and the United States, they say, there is an opportunity to begin
with a clean slate. And some feel the Bush administration is unlikely to plunge into the nitty-gritty of
negotiating details, but instead will let Israelis and Palestinians work out an agreement on their own.
"If you recall, the original Oslo agreement was devised in that manner, as were the recent talks in
Taba," said Lewis Roth, assistant executive director of Americans for Peace Now, a pro-Israel
organization that aims to enhance Israel's security through peace. "We hope that it's that same spirit that
will dictate the peace process now."
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