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| Syria-Lebanon | |
| Palestinian factions close Damascus offices | |
| 2003-05-08 | |
| Informed Palestinian sources have confirmed that four Palestinian factions have decided to close their Damascus offices in response to escalating tensions between Syria and the United States. A Palestinian official in Damascus said that the four factions, namely Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command, have âdecided willinglyâ to freeze activities in the country and hence close their offices in the Syrian capital. The anonymous source said, âThe factions received no orders from the Syrian authorities concerning the office closure. They took the decision on their own so that they wouldnât cause Damascus any further embarrassment, particularly in view of the pressure imposed on Syria by the US which claims these organizations are âterroristâ organizations.â He added, âthese offices do not exceed two or three for each faction and their activities are limited to meetings and press-related activities.â This, according to the source, âmakes it easy for the various factions to close their offices, as opposed to other factions such as the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) which, in addition to its press-related activities, also provides services for several [Palestinian] refugee camps in Damascus.â The source said the factions closed their offices last Tuesday [May 6], and since then they have not released any declarations or statements to the press or otherwise. As a confirmation to that, Al Bawaba was unable to obtain any statements from Hamas, Islamic Jihad, PFLP and PLFP - General Command to comment on the situation. It should be mentioned that Ahmed Jibril -- leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine General Command has stated he was ready to close offices in Syria in order to ease U-S pressure, but he has not heard from Damascus. The group "is ready to meet the Syrian demands if such demands are useful for Syrian policy," Jibril told reporters in Damascus. Hamas spokesman in Lebanon, Osama Hamdan, told Al Bawaba that he had âno commentâ when asked to speak about the developments. Hamas never did have a âphysicalâ office in Damascus as its activities were carried out from the home of Khaled Mishaal , head of Hamas politburo. Following a meeting with the Syrian president last week, US secretary of state Colin Powell said that Syrian American relations would depend on Damascusâ response to US demands, which included the closure of Palestinian offices and curbing Lebanonâs Hezbollah. Not too long after leaving Damascus, Powell announced at a press conference in Beirut (his next stop on a tour of the Middle East) that the Syrians have indeed begun closing the offices of the Palestinian factions in Damascus. However, the various groups reiterated then to Al Bawaba that there was no change in their âsituationâ and that their duties have not been affected [by the visit]. Assuming a lower profile, but of course they were under no pressure from the Syrian government to do so. Right.
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| Posted by:Steve |
| #4 Uh, maybe closed their offices but went down the street to the Hubbly-Bubbly Cafe? |
| Posted by: Michael 2003-05-08 12:49:01 |
| #3 They got factions! Damn, I want factions. OK, now the difference between the PFLP and the PFLP-GC? Besides two letters and a punctuation mark? Is it like "We're more popular!" And, they're a front, not a faction. |
| Posted by: Chuck 2003-05-08 11:17:50 |
| #2 "The factions received no orders from the Syrian authorities concerning the office closure. They took the decision on their own so that they wouldnât cause Damascus any further embarrassment...." Yeah, right - pull the other one! Syria must have the most fertile land in the Middle East, what with all the verbal horse manure that's produced there. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2003-05-08 10:55:28 |
| #1 âThe factions received no orders from the Syrian authorities concerning the office closure. They took the decision on their own so that they wouldnât cause Damascus any further embarrassment, particularly in view of the pressure imposed on Syria by the US which claims these organizations are âterroristâ organizations.â Uh-Huh. No pressure. Got it. Totally voluntary. You betcha. |
| Posted by: mojo 2003-05-08 10:49:49 |