---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Sun, 20 Jan 2002 04:41:35 +0100 From: Mario Profaca <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: "[Spy News]" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: [Spy News] [windows-1250] Arafat in Israel^Òs public relations trap http://www.arabnews.com/Article.asp?ID=12130 Sunday, January 20, 2002 Arafat in Israel’s public relations trap By Abdul Rahman Al-Rashid Was it not a false and ill-advised step on the part of the Palestinian Authority (PA) to deny outright that it had links with the ship whose cargo of weapons was seized recently by Israel? Israel’s public relations machinery has converted the incident into a big propaganda weapon. Though most Arab writers rallied round the Palestinian Authority and emphasized its lack of involvement in the arms shipment, Israel, on the other hand, is bent on using the matter against the Palestinians. The mistake on the part of the PA was not that it bought the weapons and made an attempt to bring them to the Palestinian homeland. On the other hand, its hurried denial was a gross mistake. The denial made the PA fall into the trap laid by Israel’s public relations officials who wanted to capitalize on denial by PA officials rather than the actual capture of the weapons. The Israelis were desperately seeking an opportunity to establish that the Palestinians, including their chief, were a bunch of liars. Soon after the capture of the ship, the Israelis announced the seizure of a lesser quantity than what was actually seized. This was apparently a calculated move on the part of Israel which was sure that the PA would deny. The next Israeli move was to reveal the full details of the seized weapons while the Palestinians held fast to their denial. The evidence produced by Israel was strong enough to pose serious challenges to the Palestinian Authority’s credibility. The issue would not have become so complicated if the PA had not attached so much importance to the seizure of the ship. Arafat should have handled the issue as the former American President Bill Clinton did regarding his involvement with Monica Levinsky. While admitting that he had some kind of relationship with the girl, Clinton denied having had illicit relations with her. Thus he brought half the issue under control. He did not deny all the charges but neither did he tell the whole truth. Instead of making a total and complete denial, it would have been safer for Arafat to have said that he was awaiting a full report on the issue. After a week or month, he could have clung to the denial if he were sure that his position was secure. The other option open to the Palestinian leadership was to announce that the weapons belonged to the PA but that the ship was in international waters and had not entered Palestinian waters when it was seized. Or the leaders could have said the ship was being sent to some other place where the Palestinian police were being trained. The Israelis exhibited the captain of the ship, an official of the PA, who admitted his role in importing the weapons. His statements were extremely embarrassing to the PA leadership. Thus, the Israelis got a golden opportunity to show that the Palestinian leadership was lying. Nobody can deny the Palestinians their right to defend themselves. There are several methods to establish that right, however, instead of resorting to outright lies. In the worst-case scenario, and if the half-truth failed to produce the desired effect, the whole truth could be told. It would have been much better if Arafat had stated that the shipment belonged to him and that he was forced to import the weapons in the face of the Israeli challenges and moves which aim at destroying his authority in the region. If he had made such a statement, Israel would not have been able to make use of the situation so powerfully against him. =============================================================== SPY NEWS is OSINT newsletter and discussion list associated to Mario's Cyberspace Station http://mprofaca.cro.net/mainmenu.html =============================================================== *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Spy News is making it available without profit to SPY NEWS eGroup members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ----------------------------------------------- SPY NEWS home page: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/spynews To change your subscription mode to Daily Digest (one message a day) send a blank message: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Please note that replying to THIS e-mail will not remove you from the mailing list. To unsubscribe SPYNEWS send a blank message: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Mario Profaca Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
