The Palestine Chronology

In East Jerusalem, PLO Exec. Comm. mbr. Hanan Ashrawi addresses diplomats from Asia, the EU, Latin America, and the Middle East, calling on them to increase donor aid to the PA and to support a revived Palestinian statehood bid at the UN (see QU in JPS 165 for details). (NYT 8/14)

Israeli Jerusalem municipal officials approve construction of 12 commercial and hotel towers (24–33 floors each) on East Jerusalem’s Jabal Abu Ghunaym/Har Homa settlement site. The IDF conducts late-night arrest raids, house searches nr. Jenin and Qalqilya. Jewish settlers fr. Eliezer settlement nr. Bethlehem, escorted by the IDF, bulldoze and level 5 d. of Palestinian agricultural land and a well in nearby al-Khadir village; the leveling cuts off Palestinian access to another 11 d. of crop land. (PCHR 8/16; OCHA 8/18)

Arafat arrives in Paris on the 1st leg of a multination tour of Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia to brief leaders on the Camp David summit, seek backing for PA positions, assess support for a unilateral declaration of statehood. After he meets with Arafat, Pres. Chirac phones Egyptian pres. Mubarak to discuss the summit. (MENA 7/29 in WNC 7/31; WP, WT 7/30; Le Monde 7/30 in WNC 8/1; CSM, JP [Internet] 7/31; al-Quds 7/31 in WNC 8/1; Le Monde 8/1 in WNC 8/2)

Over 500 Palestinian children fr. refugee camps in the West Bank, Lebanon travel to Fatima Gate, Israel's fmr. border crossing into s. Lebanon, to meet and call for the right of return. (BDL 8/3)

64-year-old French tourist is stabbed to death outside restaurant in Bethlehem by unknown assailant. Mayor Elias Freij denounces incident [MEM 4/30; NYT, WP, LAT 5/1; IDF 4/30 in FBIS 4/30].

Despite intensive bombing of Iraq's military sites, Baghdad still has enough weaponsgrade uranium to make 1 nuclear bomb, according to U.S. admin. officials and scientists [NYT 5/1].

State Dep't. reports international terrorism dropped by nearly 15% in 1990; adds that more terrorist attacks occurred in Latin America (162) and Asia (96) than in Middle East (63) [WP, LAT 5/1].

Egyptian media report PLO has not been invited to Socialist International meeting in Cairo because of its pro-Iraq Gulf war stand. A delegation from Israel's leftwing Mapam parry will attend [MEM 4/30].

Israeli Housing Ministry plans the construction of 24,000 more houses in o.t. to accommodate 88,000 Jewish settlers, according to media reports [MEM 5/1]. 

Military Action:

IDF armored units trade intermittent artillery fire with PLO in W. Beirut following night of fierce shelling; IDF shelling wrecks Algeria's six-story embassy and Summerland resort hotel, damages embassies of Kuwait, Iran, Iraq and UAE; PLO shells injure guard at presidential palace, land near residence of US Ambassador; IDF jets drop flares; 8 IDF shells hit Beirut racetrack; Phalangists resume blockade of food and fuel from West Beirut after IDF eased blockade yesterday; IDF units report capture of 600-700 PLO fighters, mainly in the Chouf mountains in the past week; IDF soldiers patrol villages in the area to prevent violence between Druze and Christian villagers.

Casualties:

Nine IDF soldiers reportedly wounded in past 24 hours; private Lebanese radio station reports 12 Palestinians killed, 18 wounded; Israeli Economy Minister Meridor, heading aid program in southern Lebanon, claims only 10 Sidon buildings damaged beyond repair (Sidon's mayor says hundreds); 50-60 people are being arrested each week in the Sidon area alone on suspicion of being PLO members/ sympathizers; ICRC still denied access to IDF's "civilian detainees" except for 18 injured being held in an Israeli hospital; refugee estimates of civilian dead in Ain el-Hilweh run to "thousands"; despite reports by IDF Druze unit which attacked camp with little PLO resistance, large areas of camp were devastated, hundreds buried under the rubble; death toll for Beirut alone since June 4 put at 2,683.

Political Responses:

Israel/ Occupied Territories: Israel reportedly sent Reagan documents indicating "mercenaries" from Asia/Africa fought with PLO and that M-16 rifles sold by the US to Saudi Arabia were found in southern Lebanon; Sharon says all PLO and Syrian forces must leave Lebanon before IDF will withdraw; Israel rejects use of multinational force as "buffer" between IDF and PLO forces; Foreign Ministry official Kimche and Israeli military intelligence officer Saguy meet with Habib in Beirut; several cabinet ministers opposed to IDF assault on Beirut even if negotiations fail; 300 IDF reservists in Tel Aviv call for an end to the war in Lebanon.

Palestinians/ Lebanese: Negotiations make little headway as PLO insists on political concessions, protection for Palestinian refugees in return for evacuation; PLO also reported to insist on retaining heavy as well as light weapons; Habib meets with Wazzan, Sarkis, Butros; Salam accuses Sharon of ordering Friday bombardment to sabotage talks; Wazzan insists US and other peacekeeping troops be deployed in W. Beirut before the PLO evacuation to protect Muslims from possible reprisals by Phalangists; Habib suggests PLO evacuation by sea using French, Canadian, Belgian or Greek navy escort; PLO's Khalaf predicts IDF will take Beirut "bit by bit."

Arab Governments: Syria continues to refuse to accept more than PLO leadership.

US and Other Countries: France agrees "in principle" to send peacekeeping troops to Beirut if all parties to the conflict and the UN agree; Draper, in Syria, fails to persuade it to accept PLO guerrillas; White House officials say the US "would welcome" use of French troops in Lebanon; USSR warns France not to submit to Washington's "dangerous plans"; Habib sets August 1 as date to begin PLO evacuation; Greece offers ships to facilitate PLO evacuation; Pope sends message to president of Israel urging honorable treatment of defeated Palestinians.

UN: UNIFIL spokesman says the number of persons in the UNIFIL area has doubled with the influx of refugees fleeing fighting in the north, many with no roof over their heads.