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'The war is over,' jailed Fatah activists tell Haaretz journalists
"For five years, I was a wanted man, but we had enough," says Sufian Qandil of the Tigers, an organization associated with Fatah's Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades. It's noon, and Qandil woke up only a few minutes ago in the prison cell where according to an agreement with Israel he must now spend his nights. "We keep our agreements, even those signed with the Jews," he says, placing his hand on his pillow with a Mickey Mouse pillowcase. The Al-Aqsa brigades were dissolved. Some members joined the security forces of the Palestinian Authority after receiving amnesty from Israel, while others are being held in PA prisons. A rare look inside Junaid Prison reveals a new era in relations between Israel and Fatah activists. They were involved in dozens of terror attacks, but now they say the era of war is over. They want normal lives. There is another expression of the winds of change blowing through Israel-PA relations: The PA arrests men wanted by Israel on request. Take Mahdi Abu Ghazale, 35, once considered the commander of the Night Riders, a rival to the Tigers. Like Qandil, Abu Ghazale received partial amnesty from Israel, with the same conditions. About a year ago, he met with a group from Haaretz in a safe house in the casbah of Nablus. He described his daily routine, and mentioned that he was still single. A few days ago he became engaged to a local woman. His fiancee's family made full amnesty from Israel a precondition for the marriage. Abu Ghazale, who fought against Israel for years, now finds himself having to prove his renunciation of terror in order to get married. "I'm being tested not only vis-a-vis Israel but also vis-a-vis my future wife," he explains. Posted by: Fred 2008-10-16 |
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