Arafat Sidesteps Questions on Move to Jericho
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TUNIS, Tunisia — PLO leader Yasser Arafat, still waiting for $24 million in promised financial aid, sidestepped questions Thursday on when he will move to Jericho to head the Palestinian government.
Although much of Arafat’s planning depends on receiving the money from international donors, senior Palestine Liberation Organization officials said he is likely to meet his target of making “the voyage of return” by month’s end.
Many people had expected him to leave Tunis, the PLO’s headquarters since 1983, after the three-day Organization of African Unity summit ended Wednesday. But all Arafat would tell reporters who tried to pin him down on his departure was, “Soon, soon.”
Israel turned over the West Bank town of Jericho and the Gaza Strip to Palestinian self-rule last month under its accords with the PLO.
Officials said a final date depends largely on how soon donor nations provide the promised aid.
Arafat is adamant he will not move until the money is in hand.
Another factor delaying the media-conscious Arafat’s arrival in Jericho is concern about news coverage, particularly television.
His advisers are counseling against competing with this weekend’s opening of the World Cup soccer series in the United States.
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