Palestinians Refuse to Capitulate

During the recent Camp David talks between Israeli Prime Minister Barak, Palestinian Authority leader Yasser Arafat and U.S. President Bill Clinton, intense pressure was exerted on the Palestinians to capitulate to the demands of the U.S. and Israel. Israel has consistently refused to implement previous agreements to recognize an independent Palestinian state and to transfer control of East Jerusalem to the Palestinians. Barak is now demanding that the Palestinians be content with limited autonomy over small areas of East Jerusalem. Israel seized Jerusalem from the Palestinians during the 1967 "Six Days War", expelled thousands of Palestinians and demolished their neighbourhoods to make way for Israeli settlements.

Despite the fact that it is clearly Israel which is reneging on its signed agreements and is the main source of continuing unrest, it is the Palestinians who are being subjected to pressure from the U.S. to be "reasonable". It is becoming crystal clear that not only Israel, but also the U.S., refuses to reconcile itself with the very existence of an independent Palestinian state. They will stop at nothing to deny the Palestinian people their right to self-determination.

The 50-year struggle of the Palestinian people for national self-determination is a just struggle which enjoys the support of the vast majority of the world's people. This struggle has gone through many twists and turns, but the main feature has been the determination of the Palestinian people to continue the fight until they achieve victory. It is that struggle which forced the Israeli government to recognize the PLO as the representative of the Palestinian people and to agree, at least in words, to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the West Bank and Gaza Strip. That struggle has now reached a new level and the Palestinian people can see victory within their grasp. It is inconceivable that they will capitulate at this stage, and the stand of their representatives at Camp David is proof of this.

The Israeli government has threatened war if the PLO goes through with its plan for a unilateral declaration of independence in September. However, for 50 years the Palestinian people have fought the heavily-armed Israeli state to a standstill with mere rocks; they are now well-armed and trained. It remains to be seen how well the Israeli army's blitzkreig tactics will succeed against an armed people's uprising.