Fatah "moderate": Peaceful means unless don't get way

Aaron Lerner Date: 27 November 2005

During the course of news items broadcast this morning by Israel Radio
regarding calls to release Marwan Barghouti in the wake of his huge victory
in the Fatah primaries, Meretz leader Yossi Beilin called for the release of
Barghouti, terming him a "man of peace". Barghouti is serving multiple life
sentences for being behind the murder of numerous Israeli civilians.

While Beilin maintained that Barghouti was a "man of peace", Barghouti's
colleague in the Fatah, PLC representative Qadura Fares, explained in Hebrew
in a live interview broadcast on the program that he and Barghouti support
"negotiations and other peaceful means with Israel as long as Palestinian
aspirations may be realized through negotiations .if Palestinian aspirations
can't be realized through peaceful means then the aspirations will be
realized via resistance."

Israel Radio's legal expert, Moshe Negbi, who is known for his leftist
orientation, slammed Israeli leftists for supporting the release of
Barghouti. "Some Israeli leftists may take the position that the
Palestinians have the right to resist the occupation, but Barghouti is in
jail after a fair trial. The court ruled in his favor on many of the counts
but they found him guilty for the deaths of civilians - a crime regardless
of one's position regarding the right to resist."

Dr. Aaron Lerner, Director IMRA (Independent Media Review & Analysis)
(Mail POB 982 Kfar Sava)
Tel 972-9-7604719/Fax 972-3-7255730
INTERNET ADDRESS: imra@netvision.net.il
Website: http://www.imra.org.il