Arafat admits mistakes, urges change

RAMALLAH, West Bank – Yasser Arafat, who is under intense pressure to share power and reform his corrupt government, said in a rare admission yesterday that he has made mistakes, but did not say what they were or how he would correct them.

The vague commitments – made in a televised speech to parliament – suggested the Palestinian leader was mainly interested in deflecting growing public pressure. In a decade at the helm of the Palestinian Authority, Arafat has repeatedly resisted attempts to get him to fight official corruption, reform the security services and relinquish some of his near-absolute powers.In the Gaza Strip, meanwhile, Israel set off a mysterious explosion in an olive grove near the house of a senior Hamas activist early yesterday, killing five Palestinians – at least four of them militants – and wounding seven.The main target of the attack, Hamas activist Ahmed Jabari, escaped with light injuries.Arafat’s speech yesterday came amid growing dissatisfaction in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with his rule.Last month, street protests erupted over some of his appointments, and Arafat’s prime minister briefly threatened to resign.Even his harshest critics have not demanded Arafat resign – he is still widely considered as a national symbol and a guarantor of unity – but he was clearly rattled by the outpouring of complaints.- Nampa-APIn a decade at the helm of the Palestinian Authority, Arafat has repeatedly resisted attempts to get him to fight official corruption, reform the security services and relinquish some of his near-absolute powers.In the Gaza Strip, meanwhile, Israel set off a mysterious explosion in an olive grove near the house of a senior Hamas activist early yesterday, killing five Palestinians – at least four of them militants – and wounding seven.The main target of the attack, Hamas activist Ahmed Jabari, escaped with light injuries.Arafat’s speech yesterday came amid growing dissatisfaction in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with his rule.Last month, street protests erupted over some of his appointments, and Arafat’s prime minister briefly threatened to resign.Even his harshest critics have not demanded Arafat resign – he is still widely considered as a national symbol and a guarantor of unity – but he was clearly rattled by the outpouring of complaints.- Nampa-AP