Arafat Court Said to Convict 4 Israel Seeks
The Palestinian Authority said a "military field court" under Ribhi Arafat, a military judge not related to the Palestinian leader, had given the four men sentences ranging from one to 18 years. A statement said Mr. Arafat had ratified the sentences.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon promptly dismissed the trial. "I must admit it looks a bit strange," he said on the evening television news. "In addition, putting them on trial twice could have been avoided, since they will be brought to trial in Israel in any event."
The contemptuous Israeli reaction was not a surprise to the Palestinians. Western diplomats said the purpose of the trial was to bolster Mr. Arafat's claim that he was fulfilling demands to crack down on terrorists.

Israel continued today to mount raids into Palestinian cities and towns to kill or seize wanted men. Israeli officials have said the raids are likely to continue, as Israel elicits information from Palestinians captured in the incursions of the past weeks. At least six Palestinians were killed in the raids.

Marking a growing breach in Israel's efforts to isolate Mr. Arafat since it declared him an "enemy" on March 29, the Palestinian leader today met with the foreign ministers of Greece and Turkey. Israel had previously denied them access to Mr. Arafat, as they had to a senior European Union official, Javier Solana, who met with Mr. Arafat on Wednesday.

The United States and the European Union have refused to break relations with Mr. Arafat, and have warned Israel against trying to capture or kill him.

The Greek and Turkish ministers, whose feuding countries do not often join forces in diplomatic missions, said they had made progress in resolving the standoff in Bethlehem, where about 250 Palestinians are besieged by Israelis forces inside the Church of the Nativity.

The Palestinian trial in Ramallah, which began this week, was widely viewed as an attempt by Mr. Arafat to strip Israel of one of its main stated reasons for the siege on his headquarters. In addition to the handover of the assassins of Tourism Minister Rehavam Zeevi, who was killed in Jerusalem in October, Israel has demanded the surrender of Ruad Shubaki, an adviser to Mr. Arafat wanted by the Israelis for organizing a shipload of arms from Iran.

The Palestinians did arrest the assassins in late February, and they were subsequently transferred to a prison in Ramallah. When the Israeli offensive began on March 29, the prison was emptied and the men were brought to Mr. Arafat's headquarters. The Palestinians said they feared that the prisons would be targets of Israeli strikes.

In refusing the Israeli demand to hand them over, the Palestinians have cited agreements with Israel under which people wanted by Israel can be tried in Palestinian courts.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/26/international/middleeast/26MIDE.html