JERUSALEM, Sept. 12 (UPI) -- The Israeli military has been ordered to draw up a plan for sending Palestinian President Yasser Arafat into exile, reports said Friday.
The decision emerged from a meeting on Thursday of the Israeli Security Cabinet, Voice of America reported.
The Israeli Security Cabinet declared Thursday Arafat is "an obstacle to the process of reconciliation between Israel and the Palestinians."
The Security Cabinet determined that Israel will "act to remove this obstacle, at a time of its choosing."
In line with this decision, the 11-minister committee asked the Israeli Defense Forces to draw up a plan to banish Arafat from the area.
Meanwhile, the Jerusalem Post said an elite IDF unit has been ready for over two years to "remove" Arafat, should the political echelon give it the order to do so.
However, in Washington, a State Department spokesman said expelling Arafat would "not be helpful," and would "just give him another stage to play on."
