A prominent Arab from Hebron who was deported to Jordan four years ago for anti-Israel activities, said here today that there was little chance of a separate peace between Jordan and Israel because King Hussein is committed to the other Arab states.
Sheikh Rashid Khatib was permitted to return to the West Bank yesterday under the summer visitors’ program after he applied directly to Defense Minister Moshe Dayan. He said Jordan and the other Arab states would be prepared to recognize Israel and make peace if Israel withdrew to its pre-June, 1967 boundaries and compensated Arab refugees for the property they lost in 1948. According to Sheikh Khatib, King Hussein’s proposal for a federation of Jordan and the West Bank is “still alive” and is supported by most Palestinians. Khatib is presently a member of the Jordan House of Notables.
Sheikh Mohammed Ali Jaabari, the Mayor of Hebron, said today that he would be willing to visit the Jewish suburb of Kiryat Arba adjacent to Hebron if Gen. Dayan agreed to accompany him. Dayan recently urged the Kiryat Arba settlers to drop their hostility toward Mayor Jaabari who was an outspoken opponent of Kiryat Arba when it was established.
Addressing the Jerusalem Labor Council’s Jewish-Arab Friendship Association. Mayor Jaabari said that Palestinian terrorists have no bases or connections in the Hebron region. Commenting on the murder of the Israeli Air Attache, Col. Yosef Alon in Washington July 1, the Hebron Mayor said he condemned all acts of violence or aggression whether perpetrated by Jews or Arabs. He said there could be no Mideast peace unless the Palestinian people were recognized as an entity and had a state of their own.
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