To its detractors, the anti-terror “Summit of Peacemakers” held at the tip of the Sinai Peninsula was little more than a publicity stunt.
Critics of the meeting described it as a thinly disguised photo op and focused on the absence of two crucial pieces in the Middle East puzzle – Syria and Lebanon, both of which had resisted strenuous pressure to attend.
In an effort to defuse some of the critics, President Clinton, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Prime Minister Shimon Peres each sought to assure reporters that what had been achieved at Sharm el-Sheik far outweighed the summit’s deficiencies.
Judging from the outcome, they may just be right.
In an unprecedented show of solidarity, the gathered leaders affirmed their support for the Middle East peace process and vowed to work together to find and “cut off” the sources of financial support for terrorists.
Pointing to the large number of attendees, Clinton said at the conclusion of the conference: “This summit is unprecedented in the history of the Middle East. It would have been inconceivable just a few short years ago.”
“It stands as proof and promise that this region has changed for good. Leaders from Israel and the Arab worlds, from Europe, from Asia, from North America – 29 of us shoulder-to-shoulder – join in support of peace,” he said.
Peres told Israeli reporters that the signature by states such as Saudi Arabia on the summit’s closing communique, which singled out Israel as a victim of terrorism, was “no small matter.”
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal had also voiced explicit and unequivocal support for the peace process, Peres noted.
Underscoring the growing acceptance of the Jewish state in the Arab world, Israeli officials pointed to the large number of Muslim countries at the summit – 14 in all.
They also disclosed that Peres has been invited by the governments of Bahrain and Qutar, two Persian Gulf states represented at Sharm el-Sheik, to pay official visits to their countries later this month.
Observers here believe that this initiative by the Gulf states could not have been taken without prior Saudi approval.
One of the real gains, officials said, was the pledge of the international community to work together against terrorism.
The paradox here is that far from being work that can be conducted publicly, any real cooperation between the governments must be done quietly.
Reports that worlds leaders are planning to create a new international anti- terrorist network were clearly not going to be spelled out for the media at the Sharm el-Sheik conference.
Britain’s Prime Minister John Major came close to speaking out on the subject when he said in his speech that his government was cooperating with both Israel and the Palestinians.
Major, who compared the setback in the Middle East peace process with the current problems of IRA terrorism and talks on the future of Ireland, refused to divulge details.
Similarly, Turkish President Suleiman Demirel, facing his own terrorism problem, focused on the need for close cooperation in intelligence services.
In this remarks, Peres alluded to the recent series of suicide bombings in Israel that claimed 58 victims. It was those attacks that drew the assemblage of world leaders.
“Security and peace are indivisible,” he said, echoing a point made by Clinton.
He also directed remarks at Iran, which was not invited to the summit and which he described as the “address” of international terrorism.
“It is the regime which initiates, promotes and exports violence and fanaticism.” Peres said. “Tehran has become the capital of terror. A conclusion must be drawn on how to contain it.”
For the first time since the wave of bombings, Peres spoke approvingly of the actions of the Palestinian Authority against the extremists.
“I have to say that over the past few days they are beginning to act vigorously,” Peres said, referring to the arrests of hundreds of Humad and Islamic Jihad activists.
Israeli sources also voiced some satisfaction that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, in his speech at the conference, specifically condemned Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
Arafat, vowing to “uproot terrorism from our land,” had previously been more vague in public statements, anxious to avoid a head-on confrontation with the entire Islamic movement in the areas under his control.
At the summit’s conclusion, Clinton and Peres flew together from Sharm el-Sheik to Ben-Gurion Airport, where a state ceremony was held.
Clinton was scheduled to remain in Israel through Thursday in a deliberate statement of solidarity with the Israeli people. He was scheduled to attend a memorial ceremony at the gravesite of slain Israeli leader Yitzhak Ranbin, meet with the Israeli Cabinet and visit school children in Tel Aviv.
Security forces were on high alert in Jerusalem to prevent any possible Hamas terrorist attacks during Clinton’s visit.
“We received general warnings, nothing specific” about threatened attacks, said Police Commissioner Assaf Hefetz.
Some 10,000 police officers, half of Israel’s entire force, were on duty to protect Clinton during his visit to the capital.
Although Clinton was the principal world leader to stay on as a show of support, most Western leaders used their speeches at the summit’s end to express sympathy for Israel’s losses.
But only the British prime minister echoed Peres’ explicit accusation that Iran was behind the terror attacks.
The Arab spokesmen were, not surprisingly, more even-handed.
They referred to Israel’s recent trauma, but they also stressed the current suffering of the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, hemmed into their towns and villages under a strict Israeli closure policy enacted after the terror attacks.
Arafat, while offering his condolences to Israel, warned that his own people were facing starvation.
Israel relaxed the closure somewhat Wednesday, allowing a convoy of trucks carrying foodstuffs to enter the Gaza Strip. Authorities also indicated that it would soon allow the Palestinians to travel between towns and villages in the West Bank.
But Peres made it clear that Israel would continue to prevent Palestinians from crossing into Israel.
He denied that he was under American or international pressure to lift the closure.
“I will conduct the policy solely in the light of security considerations, “he said.
In the communique issued at the end of the summit, the assembled leaders pledged to set up a working group that would recommend practical steps against terrorism within 30 days.
The communique also pledged enhanced financial aid to the region, especially to the Palestinians, who were singled out for assistance in French President Jacques Chirac’s comments.
Before dispersing, the leaders posed for a group photograph.
Those in the front row – Clinton, Mubarak, Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Morocco’s King Hassan II, Jordan’s King hussein, Peres and Arafat – joined hands and held them aloft in a symbol of solidarity.
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