Arafat predicts Peres will win Israeli election
May 5, 1996
Web posted at: 11:55 p.m. EDT (0355 GMT)WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat predicted that Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres will retain his office in national elections on May 29.
"Peres will win," Arafat said. "But it will be very close."
Arafat's prediction appears in an interview in Washington last week and published in the May 13 edition of The New Yorker.
The smaller political parties will hold the key to Peres' victory, Arafat suggested. And Operation Grapes of Wrath, the recent Israeli offensive against the Hezbollah in Lebanon, helped Peres' chances, he said.
"It has strengthened him a great deal," Arafat said.
Despite the offensive, Israeli Arabs would still support Peres, he said.
"They'll vote for Peres. They'll come back," Arafat said.
Related stories:
- Peres, Arafat meet in Washington - April 30, 1996
- Palestinians drop vow to destroy Israel - April 25, 1996
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