Regretting that Israel had not already done so, Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said today that it might move to expel the Palestinian leader, Yasir Arafat, by the end of the year. “Arafat never wanted to reach an agreement with us, and all he wants is to continue the conflict and bleed the citizens of Israel,” Mr. Mofaz told Israel’s Army Radio this morning. “I believe that he has to disappear from the stage of history.” “The state of Israel made a historic mistake by not expelling him some two years ago, and we had more than a few opportunities to do this,” Mr. Mofaz said, adding, “We will need to address this matter in a relatively short space of time, very possibly the end of this year.” Saeb Erekat, a member of the Palestinian parliament and head of the negotiations office of the Palestine Liberation Organization, said Mr. Mofaz’s comments served only to ratchet up tensions and cripple peace efforts based on an American-backed plan called the road map. Full Story
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