Palestinian Leader Yasser Arafat last week broke a long silence by giving TIME's Wilton Wynn and Abu Said Abu Rish his first exclusive interview since September 1975. The scene was his secret, map-lined "operations room" on the outskirts of Beirut, his mood one of amiability and drive, even though he was noticeably fatigued from a long day of hospital and cemetery visits. Surprisingly, Arafat insisted that the war in Lebanon had left his Palestine Liberation Organization stronger than before. He indicated for the first time that the P.L.O. was prepared to accept statehood alongside Israel, at least temporarily, in lieu of...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
