President Clinton Makes Historic Visit to Gaza Strip
First U.S. president to visit Palestinian territory witnesses PNC vote to annul anti-Israel clauses from PLO Charter.
President Bill Clinton made history today as the first American president to visit Palestinian-controlled territory, landing in Gaza to witness the Palestinian National Council vote to revoke clauses calling for Israel’s destruction from the PLO Charter.
The visit, part of Clinton’s effort to salvage the faltering Wye River agreement, saw unprecedented scenes of an American president addressing Palestinians as a nascent nation. Clinton received a red-carpet welcome at the newly opened Gaza International Airport, with Palestinian police in full dress uniform.
“I am profoundly honored to be the first American president to address the Palestinian people in a city governed by Palestinians,” Clinton told the gathering of 1,500 Palestinian leaders. His presence aimed to validate Palestinian compliance with Wye River requirements.
The PNC vote, conducted by a show of hands, overwhelmingly approved removing the offensive charter clauses. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, who had long demanded this action, watched the proceedings on television but remained skeptical about Palestinian intentions.
Clinton’s visit included touring a Gaza refugee camp and meeting ordinary Palestinians, images that would have been unthinkable just years ago. He urged both sides to overcome their history: “Neither side has a monopoly on pain or virtue.”
The presidential visit represents the high-water mark of American engagement in the peace process. However, with Netanyahu’s coalition fracturing over Wye implementation and Palestinian frustration growing over continued settlement expansion, Clinton’s diplomatic triumph may prove short-lived.