Saeb Erekat: Difference between revisions

==Controversies==

{{Cleanup-section| date=March 2008 }}

===Battle of Jenin controversy===

{{Main|Battle of Jenin}}

Erekat, the most prominent representative on Western television stations for the Palestinians,<ref name="JpostPen">[http://www.take-a-pen.org/english/Articles/LiarLiar1.html "Liar, liar" by Bret Stephens], [[Jerusalem Post]], Dec. 26, 2002 (hosted on take-a-pen.org) ([http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/jpost/access/273207561.html?dids=273207561:273207561&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Dec+27%2C+2002&author=BRET+STEPHENS&pub=Jerusalem+Post&edition=&startpage=16.B&desc=Liar%2C+liar source])</ref> came under criticism after Palestinian spokesmen, himself included, characterized Israel's operations in Jenin as a massacre since its early stages.<ref name=Rice>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0205/05/le.00.html CNN Transcripts: Interview with Condoleezza Rice; Last Chance for Arafat?; How to Best Protect the Cockpit?]<br>BLITZER: Mr. Erakat, you probably know that you've come under some widespread criticism here in the United States for initially charging that the Israelis were engaged in a massacre in Jenin. Perhaps 500 Palestinians murdered in that massacre, you suggested. But now all of the evidence suggests that perhaps 53 or 56 Palestinians died in that fighting in Jenin.</ref><ref name="JpostPen"/><ref>[http://www.jcpa.org/art/brief1-22.htm JCPA Issue Brief: What Really Happened in Jenin?]</ref><ref name=CAMERA>[http://www.camera.org/index.asp?x_article=217&x_context=7 'BACKGROUNDER: A Study in Palestinian Duplicity and Media Indifference'] by Yehuda Kraut ([[CAMERA]])<br>* April 7, 'Israel warns Lebanon, Syria they risk a new border war' by Betsy Pisik, Washington Times ([http://goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/summary_0199-1720427_ITM&referid=2090 source])</ref><ref>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0206/05/cf.00.html CNN Transcripts: Israel Retaliates to Suicide Bombing by Invading Arafat Compound]</ref><ref>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0205/01/bn.13.html CNN Transcripts: Massive Gunfire Outside Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity]</ref> Erekat repeated unsubstantiated<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3015814.stm 'Jenin rises from the dirt' by Ken Lee], [[BBC]], June 24, 2003</ref><ref name="evidence"/> claims that no less than 500 Palestinians were "massacred" in the ''"no longer in existence"'' [[Jenin]] refugee camp.<ref name="500+">[http://edition.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0204/17/wbr.00.html CNN Transcripts: Secretary Powell Leaves Middle East Empty Handed; Palestinians Remain Under Israeli Siege]<br>ERAKAT: I have a suggestion to make... let them go to Jenin... There is no longer a refugee camp there... the camp was totally destroyed. They conducted terror. They're not out there to fight terror. They are conducting terror... an international commission of inquiry to get the results (ph) and to decide how many people were massacred. And we say the number will not be less than 500.</ref><ref name="JpostPen">[http://www.take-a-pen.org/english/Articles/LiarLiar1.html "Liar, liar" by Bret Stephens], [[Jerusalem Post]], Dec. 26, 2002 (hosted on take-a-pen.org) ([http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/jpost/access/273207561.html?dids=273207561:273207561&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Dec+27%2C+2002&author=BRET+STEPHENS&pub=Jerusalem+Post&edition=&startpage=16.B&desc=Liar%2C+liar source])</ref><ref name=Rice/><ref>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0204/10/i_ins.00.html CNN Transcripts: Colin Powell's Challenge]</ref> He also stated that Israel is trying to cover up the "massacre"<ref name="evidence">[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0204/14/lol.01.html CNN Transcripts: Jerusalem: Could Mideast Conflict Widen?; Powell Meets With Sharon, Arafat; Are U.S. Interests Affected by the Crisis?]<br>Palestinians have charged that the Israeli army was trying to cover up a massacre, something the military in Israel strongly denies.<br>ERAKAT: I don't have evidence... They're trying to cover up"</ref> and that witnesses are telling him that, ''"they dug graveyards and have buried a lot of people"''.<ref>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0204/15/bn.09.html CNN Transcripts: 'Interview With Ariel Sharon']</ref> These claims have been refuted and the final death toll for the Jenin battle was set at approx. 52-56 Palestinians while Israel suffered 23 casualties.<ref name="Qadoura56">[http://www.papillonsartpalace.com/jenin.htm 'Jenin "massacre" reduced to death toll of 56' by Paul Martin, ''Washington Times'' (host site)] [http://www.rense.com/general24/dt.htm (mirror host)]</ref><ref name=UN>[http://www.un.org/peace/jenin/ UN Report on Jenin] ([http://daccess-ods.un.org/access.nsf/Get?Open&DS=A/ES-10/186&Lang=E Source PDF]) - Pg 11-12, Para 52-53, 56-57</ref><ref name=Rice>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0205/05/le.00.html CNN Transcripts: Interview with Condoleezza Rice; Last Chance for Arafat?; How to Best Protect the Cockpit?]</ref><ref name="NOMBBC">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2165272.stm 'UN says no massacre in Jenin'], [[BBC]]</ref><ref>[http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-2033593,00.html UN states: There wasn't a massacre in the Jenin refugee camp], [[Yedioth Ahronoth]] {{languageicon|he|Hebrew}}</ref><ref name="Haarerz">[http://www.haaretz.co.il/hasite/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=193219 U.N. General Council will discuss the Jenin report], [[Haaretz]] {{languageicon|he|Hebrew}}</ref> However, Erekat followed earlier statements that he ''"stand[s] by the term "massacres""''<ref>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0204/15/bn.09.html CNN Transcripts: 'Interview With Ariel Sharon']</ref> and rejected the UN report.<ref name="NOMBBC"/><ref name="Haarerz"/><ref name="teleUN">[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2002/08/02/wmid102.xml ' UN clears Israel of massacre at Jenin' by Alan Philps], [[Telegraph]]</ref> Israeli voices and conservative commentators leveled accusations that the international press preferred the Jenin "massacre hoax" to the facts causing harm to Israel's image, and accused the Palestinians and Erekat of lying.<ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3280038,00.html 'Jenin massacre syndrome' by Sever Plocker], [[Yedioth Ahronoth]]</ref><ref name="JpostPen"/><ref>[http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/001/218vnicq.asp 'The Big Jenin Lie' by Richard Starr], [[The Daily Standard]], May 8, 2002</ref><ref>[http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-cohen041602.asp 'Jenin: The Big Lie' by Ariel Cohen], [[National Review]], April 16, 2002</ref><ref>[http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-gross051302.asp 'Jeningrad: What the British media said.' by Tom Gross], [[National Review]], May 13, 2002</ref><ref name=CAMERA><ref name="CharlesKrauthammer">[http://www.townhall.com/columnists/CharlesKrauthammer/2002/05/03/the_jenin_massacre_hoax 'The 'Jenin Massacre' hoax'] by [[Charles Krauthammer]], [[Townhall.com]], May 3, 2002</ref><ref>[http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/critiques/The_Real_Massacre_-_Israels_Image.asp 'The Real Massacre - Israel's Image'], [[Honest Reporting]], April 23, 2002]</ref>

===Jewish state controversy===

Erekat, part of the Israeli-Fatah negotiations team has been noted by the Israeli media and criticized for stating in November 2007 that the Palestinians will not accept Israel as 'Jewish state' and for his radio statement that, ''"no state in the world connects its national identity to a religious identity."'' [[Ehud Olmert]], the Israeli Prime minister was noted replying that, ''"We won't hold negotiations on our existence as a Jewish state, this is a launching point for all negotiations,"'' while others noted the fallacy in Erekat's latter claim regarding religious identities.<ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/923076.html Erekat: Palestinians will not accept Israel as 'Jewish state' by Barak Ravid], ([[Haaretz]])</ref><ref>[http://www.mideastweb.org/log/archives/00000646.htm 'Israel and Palestinians: The crucial issue' by Ami Isseroff]</ref><ref>[http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071120/OPINION01/711200309/1007/OPINION 'Palestinians have no right to decide Israel's identity' by Rabbi Aaron Bergman], [[The Detroit News]]</ref><ref>[http://www.forward.com/articles/12015/ 'Defining a Nation'], [[The Forward]]</ref>