The State Department revealed yesterday that dealing with the Palestine Liberation Organization for the safety of foreigners who were evacuated from Lebanon yesterday was not the first U.S. official contact with the terrorist organization.
The security officer at the American Embassy in Beirut has been in contact with them “for some time,” said State Department spokesman Robert Funseth. The disclosure came when a reporter asked whether the American presence in Beirut is by “the grace and good will” of the PLO. The U.S. Embassy is in an area of Beirut occupied by PLO gunmen.
“I don’t have that kind of detailed information on the security situation but I do know that Palestine groups have exercised for some time the security function in that section of Beirut,” Funseth said. He added that the security officer’s contacts were not related to yesterday’s evacuation. The official is a U.S. foreign service officer, Funseth said.
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