Greece stands by ‘friend’ Yasser Arafat

As Foreign Minister George Papandreou insisted that Athens regards Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as a friend, the country’s main political parties yesterday expressed alarm at the new escalation of violence between Israelis and Palestinians, mostly condemning Israel for its massive incursion into Ramallah «I think this dramatic state of affairs requires a much greater involvement, a dynamic initiative from the international community, by which, I mean the United Nations, the United States of America and the European Union,» Papandreou said. «Many initiatives of recent months, even recent years, could have been implemented had the political will been available,» he said, citing this year’s Saudi Arabian proposals as an example. «We condemn the military operations and the blockade on Mr Arafat, but of course we also condemn the acts of blind violence and terrorism,» he said. «For us, Arafat is not an enemy. He is the legitimate leader of the Palestinian Authority, and that is not [just] something that Greece says, it is also something that the European Union says.» Papandreou – whose father, former PM Andreas Papandreou, was a personal friend of Arafat’s – said he would try to visit the area to mediate. The ruling PASOK party, at whose October congress Arafat was a guest speaker, issued a strong denunciation of Israeli PM Ariel Sharon’s policies. «We unreservedly condemn the invasion by Israeli forces of the Palestinian territory and the trampling on the Palestinian people’s fundamental rights,» a party statement said. «The recent dramatic developments that endanger President Arafat’s life are destroying the prospect of peace and cause the indignation of the Greek people.» Opposition New Democracy expressed «deep concern» at the state of affairs in the Middle East and called on the international community to ensure that a Palestinian state can be created «while fully guaranteeing the security of the state of Israel.» The leaders of the Communist Party and the Synaspismos Left Coalition expressed solidarity with the Palestinians. Israeli Ambassador David Sasson called the incursion into Ramallah «an act of self defense,» adding that Israel does not wish to harm Arafat.