Arafat defiant as Israel threatens his expulsion

Yasser Arafat remained defiant in his West Bank headquarters today as the Israeli security Cabinet debated expelling him, with one minister suggesting he should be killed.

“No one can kick me out,” the Palestinian leader said at his Ramallah compound.

Asked if he would leave of his own accord, he said, “definitely not.”

Seeking a dramatic response to the latest Hamas suicide bombings, Israeli foreign minister Silvan Shalom said a majority of his colleagues support the expulsion idea.

However, the United States continues to oppose expulsion, and it was unclear whether Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will override his Cabinet, despite growing public pressure in Israel for drastic action.

Eight of the 11 members of the security Cabinet are in favour of expulsion and two are opposed, Israel TV said. Sharon has not made his view public.

Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz went even further – saying expelling Arafat was the least Israel should do, and that killing him should be considered.

The Israeli military has begun making preparations for Arafat’s possible expulsion, said a security official.

Overnight, Israeli troops took over two buildings – the Palestinian Culture Ministry and an uninhabited structure – near Arafat’s headquarters.

The ministers were also weighing other possible responses to Tuesday’s twin suicide bombings that killed 15 Israelis.

One proposal is to tighten Arafat’s isolation in Ramallah by keeping out visitors and cutting off phones, and another idea is to reoccupy the Gaza Strip, where the Hamas leadership is based.

Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said Sharon might not put the expulsion to a vote because the United States is not expected to approve such a far-reaching decision.

“We are in a situation in which US approval for this, in case we asked for it, would be almost impossible to obtain,” Shalom said. “I think there are some situations in which we have to make decisions ... that are completely cut off from outside influence.”

In the West Bank, the designated Palestinian prime minister, Ahmed Qureia, decided today to form a full government, rather than an emergency Cabinet of eight ministers he had initially envisioned.

Qureia made the decision after a stormy meeting of PLO officials, leaders of the ruling Fatah party and legislators, many of whom opposed the idea of a crisis Cabinet.

The Palestinian leadership also decided to form a national security council, headed by Arafat, that would oversee all branches of the security forces.

The council would technically satisfy a demand by Israel and the United States that control over security be under one authority. However, Israeli government spokesman Zalman Shoval said the step meant nothing as long as Arafat is involved in decisions on security.