Arafat to Visit Syria in April: PLO OfficialPalestinian leader Yasser Arafat will make an official visit to Syria on April 20, Egypt's Middle East News Agency quoted a senior Palestinian official as saying Sunday.Farouk Al Kadoumy, director of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Political Department, said that Syrian and Palestinian officials recently held talks in Damascus to pave the way for Arafat's projected visit to Syria. Syria places as "a top priority" the Palestinian cause in seeking legitimate rights against Israel's occupation, he said, adding that it is important to enhance Palestinian-Syrian coordination in resistance against Israel's coercive measures. Arafat's visit comes after he and Syrian President Bashar al- Assad held their first ever formal meeting in Amman, Jordan last month on the sidelines of the Arab summit, during which both pledged a new chapter in the chronically strained relations between the two sides. Ties between the Palestinians and Syria have been soured since the Palestinians signed separately the Oslo peace accords with Israel in 1993. Last July, Syria declined to receive Arafat, who made intensive diplomatic contacts to garner support for the Palestinians after the ill-fated Camp David summit with Israel. Arafat travelled to Damascus last June to attend the funeral of Syrian late president Hafez al-Assad and met briefly with his successor and son Bashar al-Assad. |
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