Israel backs away from Arafat death threats

Israel tonight backed off from threats to kill Yasser Arafat

Facing widespread international opposition to harsh action against the Palestinian leader, Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom sought to play down previous comments by Israeli leaders that killing Arafat is an option.

“It is not the official policy of the Israeli government,” Shalom said.

“We don’t speak about any killing. We didn’t speak about it before, and we don’t speak about it today.”

Earlier, the Israeli ambassador in London was summoned to the Foreign Office for a dressing down.

Zvi Shtauber was told the death threat against Arafat was “unacceptable.”

Baroness Symons made it clear to him “that the government views that the expulsion of President Arafat would be wrong, and would not be in the interests of long-term peace, and that the comments made about assassinating President Arafat were unacceptable,” said Prime Minister Tony Blair’s spokesman.

On Sunday Israeli Vice Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said killing Arafat is a possibility, along with expelling him or further isolating him inside the partly destroyed West Bank compound where Arafat has remained for nearly two years, repeatedly besieged by Israeli troops.

While various countries sought to pressure Israel to soften its stance, Palestinian Prime Minister-designate Ahmed Qureia asked the Fatah party to choose candidates for up to 16 of his 24 Cabinet posts – a decision that gives Arafat significant control over the composition of the new Cabinet.

Israeli leaders have said they will not deal with any new government that is effectively under Arafat’s control, and that any Palestinian government must act against militant groups – as required by the US backed “road map” peace plan - and unite all security forces under a single person other than Arafat or his lieutenants.

Israeli leaders accuse Arafat of sabotaging peace efforts and blocking a crackdown on the militants whose suicide bombings and shootings have killed hundreds of Israelis in the past three years.

The Palestinians say the Israelis have tied their hands by continuing to carry out their own raids against militants, frequently killing them and sometimes civilians as well, angering the Palestinian public.