[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 24704-24705]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                   CONCERNING VIOLENCE IN MIDDLE EAST

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. BENJAMIN L. CARDIN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 24, 2000

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H. Con. 
Res. 426, concerning the recent disturbing violence in the Middle East. 
The resolution expresses the sense of Congress that the success of the 
Middle East peace process depends on the leadership of the Palestinians 
abandoning the

[[Page 24705]]

use of violence and joining with the Prime Minister Barak of Israel in 
a true search for peace.
  Two weeks ago, Mr. Speaker, I rose with a heavy heart, after learning 
about the latest violence in Israel. News reports at that time told us 
that two Israeli reserve soldiers had been killed in the West Bank town 
of Ramallah. The Israeli soldiers were detained by the Palestinian 
police after they inadvertently made a wrong turn down a street, and 
were taken to a police station. Apparently a mob of Palestinians broke 
into the police station, slaughtered the Israeli soldiers, and paraded 
their bodies through the streets.
  This horrendous incident followed on the heels of days of violence by 
the Palestinian people. The tragedy of the return to street violence 
was aggravated by the refusal of the Palestinian leadership, and Yasser 
Arafat in particular, to move aggressively to restore order to the 
troubled region. Rather than exercise its law enforcement 
responsibilities, the Palestinian leadership actually encouraged the 
violence.
  Mr. Speaker, the resolution before us today rightly condemns the 
Palestinian leadership for encouraging the violence and doing so little 
for so long to stop it, resulting in the senseless loss of life. Mr. 
Arafat must call upon the Palestinian leadership to refrain from any 
exhortations to public incitement, and Mr. Arafat must use his security 
forces to act immediately to stop all violence, to show respect for all 
holy sites, and to settle all grievances through negotiations. His 
total failure to take such actions necessitates our action today on 
this resolution.
  I call on Mr. Arafat to live up to his obligations under the Oslo 
Accords, and to maintain public order and calm in the West Bank through 
a vigorous use of the Palestinian police force. Let us remember that 
the Palestinians now fully control over 40 percent of the West Bank and 
Gaza, with over 95% of the Palestinian population under the civil 
administration of the Palestinian Authority. As the Palestinians gain 
greater authority and control over their domestic affairs, they also 
must shoulder the additional security responsibilities that come hand-
in-hand with territorial control. The Palestinians must ensure the 
safety of both Israelis and Palestinians within their areas of control.
  Mr. Arafat has personally assumed responsibility over all PLO 
elements and personnel in order to assure the maintenance of peace, 
law, and order in the West Bank. Just two weeks ago Mr. Arafat allowed 
a Palestinian mob to destroy Joseph's Tomb, a Jewish holy site in the 
West Bank, just hours after Israeli troops withdrew and allowed the 
Palestinian police to take control. Mr. Arafat has again violated his 
obligations under the Oslo Accords to ``ensure free, unimpeded and 
secure access to the relevant Jewish holy site[s]'' and to ``ensure the 
peaceful use of such site[s], to prevent any potential instances of 
disorder, and to respond to any incident.''
  The statements attributed to Mr. Arafat following the recent Arab 
League summit only exacerbate the problem of his failure to be a leader 
for peace. Upon his return to Gaza on October 22, 2000, Mr. Arafat 
stated: ``We will continue on to Jerusalem, the capital of the 
independent Palestinian state. If Barak wants to, he will accept it. 
And if he doesn't accept it, he can go to hell.'' Those are not the 
words of one seeking to put the peace process back on track.
  Moreover, it is very troubling to see that Arab leaders legitimized 
the use of violence by the Palestinians as a negotiating tactic while 
Mr. Arafat praised those involved in violent attacks against Israelis. 
The Arab League also called for a downgrading of existing ties with 
Israel and for a halt in the establishment of any new relations with 
the Jewish state.
  Mr. Speaker, each of us prays for peace in the Middle East. The only 
way to achieve peace is for the Palestinian leaders not only to condemn 
terrorism, but to take steps to stop it. We must also unequivocally 
state to Mr. Arafat, and to the countries of the Arab League, that 
Israel will only yield territory as the result of negotiations through 
a legitimate peace process, and that the United States stands firmly 
against the continued promotion of violence and terrorism by the 
Palestinian leadership, and specifically Mr. Arafat.

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