Key PLO Faction Softens Call for Armed Struggle Against Israel

The Palestinian Liberation Organization’s mainstream Fatah group issued a new statement to its Tunis congress Friday, softening calls for armed struggle that had been repudiated by Israel and the United States.

“The congress affirmed (Fatah’s) commitment to the principles of international legitimacy, which give our people the right to practice all forms of struggle, including armed struggle, to confront the hateful Israeli occupation,” said the statement, a summary of this week’s congress.

A political program endorsed by the congress and released Tuesday said Fatah would continue to “intensify and escalate armed action and all forms of struggle to eliminate the Zionist Israeli occupation of our occupied Palestinian land.”

Israel and the United States on Thursday criticized the wording of the program, saying it raised questions about whether Fatah was sincere in its desire for peace.

In Jerusalem, Foreign Ministry officials said the resolutions were a step backward and unacceptable.

The statement goes further than the political program in embracing Arafat’s diplomatic offensive, saying: “The congress affirms its commitment to the Palestinian peace initiative endorsed by the Palestine National Council.”