Barak Retracts Offer to Guerrilla Chief

Prime Minister Ehud Barak has changed his mind about letting a Palestinian guerrilla chief return to Palestinian self-rule areas, an Israeli official said. Barak’s office had announced Sunday that Nayef Hawatmeh, head of the Damascus, Syria-based Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, could return to the West Bank and Gaza Strip. However on Friday, Barak “decided to suspend the permit because of statements which Hawatmeh has made and conditions he has tried to impose,” said Barak media advisor Gadi Baltiansky. Hawatmeh told reporters this week that he favored continuing the armed struggle against Israel. His group was one of the most vehement in the 1970s against reconciliation with Israel and led some of the bloodiest attacks.