RAMALLAH,
West Bank, September 29 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - UN special
envoy Terje Roed-Larsen said Sunday, September 29, he hoped Israeli
troops would quit Ramallah after lifting the siege of Palestinian
President Yasser Arafat's offices, but went back on earlier remarks
that the move was actually on the way.
"What
I've been told by the Israeli authorities is that they'll withdraw to
the pre-crisis (positions) that is the siege of the Muqataa,"
Arafat's headquarters in the West Bank town, he told CNN television.
"Hopefully
Israel will continue its withdrawal consistent with the latest
Security Council resolution which calls for Israel to further withdraw
up to the September 2000 positions," he said, referring to the
start of the Palestinian Intifada two years ago.
Roed-Larsen
earlier quoted senior Israeli officials as saying the (occupation)
army would pull back to the positions it held before the outbreak of
the Intifada, starting with a complete pullout from Ramallah.
"What
I understand from the Israeli government at the highest level is there
will be a complete pullback by Israeli troops to the positions of
pre-September 2000," Roed-Larsen said, while meeting with Arafat
in the wake of the siege.
"From
what I understand, there will be a complete pullback from Ramallah
today (Sunday)," said the Norwegian diplomat.
Israel
earlier said it would lift the siege of Arafat's offices after a
10-day blockade but would keep troops in the area in case 41
“wanted” Palestinians in the building tried to escape.
In
Cairo, meanwhile, Egypt and the Arab League said Sunday the end of
Israel's 10-day blockade of Arafat's compound did not go far enough
and demanded that the Jewish state lift its siege of the Palestinian
people, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
"The
siege that must be lifted is the siege imposed on the Palestinian
people," said Egypt's Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher.
The
pullout of Israeli troops from Arafat's compound "is a first
step. It is proof that international efforts in and outside the
framework of the UN Security Council can force Israel to stop its
attack," he said.
He
called on Israel to comply with international resolutions, to
"stop its aggression against the Palestinian people" and
commit to a peaceful settlement to the Middle East conflict.
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Terje Roed-Larsen
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Maher
said U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell told him in a phone call of
the Israeli troop withdrawal from Arafat's offices.
The
Foreign Minister also spoke with his Russian counterpart Igor Ivanov
about Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's visit to Moscow that
starts Sunday, a ministry statement said.
Ivanov
said he would pressure Sharon to commit to the peace process, the
statement added.
Egypt
was the first Arab country to sign a peace deal with Israel in 1979
and serves as a mediator between Israel and the Arab world.
For
its part, the Arab League called the Israeli withdrawal from Arafat's
offices "insufficient" and said Israel should withdraw to
its positions before the eruption of the Intifada in September 2000,
stressing that UN Security Council resolution 1435, passed last week,
demanded such a pullout.
In
Ramallah, a column of around 10 Israeli tanks and armored vehicles
made its way through Ramallah late Sunday, hours after leaving,
witnesses in the north of the West Bank town told AFP.
The
tanks were seen entering the town from the northeastern Jewish
settlement and army base of Beit El, close to Arafat's headquarters,
although it was not immediately clear what their destination was.
The
column looped round inside the eastern edge of the town and then
exited toward the army base of Ofer on the southern flank of the city,
witnesses said.
No
incidents were reported in what appeared to be either a curfew patrol
or a show of force.
Palestinian
security officials earlier said there were no tanks left in the town,
saying they were only aware of one army position of 12 soldiers close
Arafat's base.
However,
the Israeli army denied it left the city, and jeeps patrolled the
streets at 6:30 pm (1530 GMT) alerting the residents that a curfew was
again in place
