Ramallah meet confers Israeli violence

By: Ahmad Hammadi

RAMALLAH: Palestinian President Yasser Arafat received here on Tuesday the United Nations Special Rapporteur for Human Rights John Doughard, and thousands of Palestinians protested the arrests of four men on charges of US convoy killings.

According to the Palestinian News Agency WAFA Doughard briefed Arafat on his ongoing activities to prepare a report on human rights in the Palestinian territories. The meeting also reviewed the continuous Israeli aggression and violation of human rights in the Palestinian cities, villages and camps.

Meanwhile, thousands including dozens of gunmen firing in the air staged a protest Tuesday on the streets of Gaza city against the arrests of four men on charges of planting explosives that may have ripped apart a US diplomatic convoy last October, killing three Americans.

The suspects' indictment over the weekend was met with skepticism by many Palestinians and in Washington. The charges were announced days after the United States publicized a $5 million reward for information about the attackers.

In Dublin, Palestinian Premier Ahmed Qurei while speaking at a news conference called for an urgent international meeting to discuss the barrier Israel is building in the West Bank.

“It is time for the quartet to move,” Qurei told reporters after talks with his Irish counterpart Bertie Ahern, whose country currently holds the presidency of the European Union.

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