A six member Congressional delegation visiting the Middle East met in Beirut yesterday with Palestine Liberation Organization chairman Yasir Arafat, it was reported here today.
Rep. Toby Moffett (D. Conn.) head of the delegation, told a press conference after the meeting that the Congressmen urged Arafat “to halt military operations against Israel from Lebanon.”Moffeh added that if the Palestinians desire international recognition “they must assume a policy of non-violence, not only in Lebanon, but generally.”
Moffett, who is of Lebanese descent, and the other members of the House– Reps- Nick Joe Rahall (D. W. Va.) and Mary Rose Oaker (D. Ohio), also of Lebanese descent; and Robert Con (R. Mich.) Harold Hollenbeck (R. NJ), and Paul McCloskey (R.Calif.)– left yesterday for Damascus. The delegation, which was appointed by House Speaker Thomas O’Neill (D. Mass.), will conclude its 10-day Mideast tour in Jerusalem where they expect to meet with Premier Menachem Begin, Labor Party chairman Shimon Peres and members of the Knesset.
While in Lebanon the delegation also net with President Elias Sarkis. Before leaving Washington last Wednesday, Moffett said the delegation would discuss with Sarkis the prospect of developing a separate U.S. policy on Lebanon similar to the U.S. policy with Israel and Egypt. Moffett told the press conference in Beirut yesterday that he and the other delegation members would, upon their return home, urge the U.S. government to work toward the creation of a Palestinian state.
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