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Salmon seeks Arafat's aid in murder cases
Lawmaker wants justice in deaths of 10 Americans
RANDI BAROCAS
Staff Writer
U.S. Rep. Matt Salmon (R-Ariz.) says he will do everything within his power to bring to justice the murderers of the 10 American citizens killed in Israel since the signing of the 1993 Oslo Accords - including traveling to the Middle East to ask Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat for help.
Salmon, who is visiting Israel with Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.) as part of an official "Codel," or congressional delegation, is scheduled to meet with Arafat in Gaza today (July 3). The congressman plans to ask the PA leader to cooperate with the U.S. State and Justice Departments in providing information to the U.S. agencies about those suspected of killing Americans in Israel, and extraditing those suspects to the U.S. to stand trial.
In a telephone interview this week, Salmon said that in an effort to persuade Arafat to cooperate, "I am going to take with me the resolution that I sponsored and that passed unanimously on the House floor, calling on Arafat and those organizations that he represents to work with the United States to bring those criminals to justice."
That resolution, known as House Concurrent Resolution 220, was sponsored by Salmon and Reps. Jon Fox (R-Pa.) and Benjamin Gilman (R-N.Y.). Passed unanimously in the House of Representatives on May 5, the resolution specifically calls on the Clinton administration "to demand that Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian Authority transfer to the United States, for prosecution, those residents of its territory who are suspected in the killings of American citizens."
"I will take (that resolution) with me, show him that, tell him this is a very serious issue not only to the American people, but to (Congress as well)," Salmon said. "I will ask him in the name of peace to work with us. ... I will pursue it until justice is done.
"If he decides not to work with us, I will take that back to Congress and tell them that (Arafat) is not interested in bringing murderers to justice," Salmon added.
In addition to asking politely for Arafat's assistance, the congressman also may express concerns to the chairman "about continued U.S. financial assistance (the administration has requested $100 million in aid for the PA for fiscal year 1999) if the PA does not make real progress towards bringing these terrorists to justice," according to a news release from Salmon's Washington, D.C., office.
When asked whether he would raise concerns over continued aid to the PA only if Arafat seemed reluctant or unwilling to cooperate in the initial matter, Salmon declined to comment, stressing instead that, "For this mission to be successful and safe, I don't want to lay all my cards on the table at once."
The Arizona congressman's trip to the region comes after months of his working behind the scenes in an effort to ensure the capture and trial of the suspects. Aside from his personal efforts, Salmon said that up until now, "nothing has been done" to resolve the issue, because the Justice Department has not been given enough information to bring indictments against the suspects.
However, a letter to Salmon drafted by Acting Assistant Attorney General L. Anthony Sutin with the Justice Department, dated June 16, 1998, indicates that the FBI and both the State and Justice Departments have been looking into the matter for some time.
The letter explained that the FBI "investigates all cases that involve the murder of a U.S. national abroad resulting from an act of terrorism," but that the agency is "limited by considerations of sovereignty," in the cases of those murdered in Israel.
According to the letter, a "Diplomatic Note" was submitted to Israel in October of 1996 "requesting judicial assistance relating to those cases in which Americans have been victims of terrorist acts in that region," and that "periodic inquiries" followed the initial request.
It wasn't until February of this year that "the Department of Justice received a response from the Israeli Administrative Judge advising that, because of national security considerations, the government of Israel would be unable to fully comply with our request," the letter read.
The letter also clarified that, "In these extraterritorial investigations, when sufficient admissible evidence is developed and available for use at trial, such that it is probable that we could obtain a conviction in a U. S. court, we are in a position to seek an indictment. Until that point is reached, we do not have a basis to seek the transfer of a suspect to U.S. custody."
Despite the Justice Department's response, Salmon contends that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is willing to work with the U.S. on the matter. Salmon plans to meet with Netanyahu and several other high-ranking Israeli officials - including Minister of Trade Natan Sharansky, Communications Director David Bar-Ilan, Infrastructure Minister Ariel Sharon, and Uzi Landau, chairman of the Knesset's Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee - to discuss the issue during his short visit to the Jewish state.
Salmon acknowledged that his five-day Mideast mission is "very specific" in nature and that he is "looking forward to bringing this issue to a close."
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