Powell pledges justice on abuse

DEAD SEA, Jordan — Secretary of State Colin L. Powell launched a multipronged effort yesterday to mend US relations with the Arab world, promising to bring to justice the Americans responsible for abusing Iraqi prisoners and to reinvigorate the moribund Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

Powell told 2,000 government, business and civic leaders from across the Arab world, gathered at a World Economic Forum at a resort here, that they would ‘‘see American democracy in action’’ in the coming weeks in response to the humiliation of Iraqi detainees at Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad.

‘‘I can tell you, straight from my heart, that we will deal with this,’’ he said in an emotional speech. ‘‘We will see that justice is done.’’

In an earlier meeting in Amman with the Palestinian Authority’s prime minister, Ahmed Qurei, Powell attempted to reassure Arabs about President Bush’s recent endorsement of proposals by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel to disengage the warring sides. He also urged Qurei to ‘‘seize the opportunity’’ offered by Sharon’s plan, which is being revised following its rejection by Sharon’s Likud Party.

The proposal included an Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Gaza Strip and the northernmost West Bank, and retention by Israel of major West Bank settlement blocs. The plan created a storm of opposition in the region and sparked accusations that Bush had changed longstanding policy and sided openly with Israel on the issues of Jewish settlements and the resettlement of Palestinian refugees.

Powell said that Bush embraced the proposal because, before the plan emerged, ‘‘the process was not moving,’’ while under the plan ‘‘for the first time, we were seeing the removal of settlements and not the addition of settlements.’’ In Tel Aviv last night, more than 100,000 Israelis rallied in favor of an Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip. The protest, led by the Labor Party, followed a bloody week in Gaza in which 13 Israelis and at least 29 Palestinians were killed.

Powell was animated and passionate throughout the speech here. His voice broke when he talked of American soldiers’ honor and integrity in battle, and again when he stressed his country’s commitment to peace.

Referring to the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by American soldiers, he said: ‘‘We were in a state of disbelief for days, as you were here, . . . as we saw what our young men and women had done. Our heads bow, our hearts ache over what a small number of them did’’ to detainees. Delegates appeared to react coolly to his speech. Many shifted uncomfortably in their chairs; others sat with arms tightly crossed or looked down.

US officials said some of those feelings were relayed personally in one-on-one meetings later that included Amr Moussa, secretary general of the Arab League. ‘‘People made it clear to us that there was a lot of anger in the Arab world,’’ a senior State Department official told the Chicago Tribune.

Powell was preceded at the conference by King Abdullah II of Jordan, one of the United States’ closest allies in the region. Abdullah spoke of the need for peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians, for the creation of a Palestinian state, and for the formation of a credible sovereign government in Iraq.

‘‘The world’s leaders must demonstrate once and for all that they are serious about Palestinian freedom,’’ he said. He warned that ‘‘the international community must be an active partner in building a legitimate, inclusive, and effective political process in Iraq,’’ and said that ‘‘questions about the credibility of that process will encourage extremism and obstruct the process of regional reform.’’

Powell agreed, saying that the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians would create a burden for those seeking to overhaul policies in the region until there is an agreement directly negotiated between the two sides.

But he told the Arab dignitaries that their countries also had obligations, in their own interests, to help the process of democratizing and restoring sovereignty in Iraq.

He called on Arabs to assist the interim government now being created, ‘‘and to assist the Iraqi people as they move to a transitional government and then hopefully . . . a permanent arrangement based on open, free, and fair elections.

‘‘Their success will create an example that can be used for the region and other parts of the world,’’ he said. ‘‘The stakes in Iraq are high for all of us. That’s why all who want a Middle East that is at peace, that’s prosperous, that’s culturally vital, and politically free must join together to make sure that Iraq succeeds.’’

Qurei said his talks with Powell were constructive. But simultaneously, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said in a live broadcast that Palestinians all had a right to return to lands they inhabited before the Arab war to prevent the creation of the state of Israel.

‘‘The right of Palestinian refugees to return their homes is a sacred and inalienable right that is internationally protected and endorsed,’’ Arafat said. ‘‘This right is heroically defended by the Palestinian people.’’

He ended the broadcast with a verse from the Koran, calling on Palestinians to ‘‘terrorize the enemy of Allah and your enemy, and others you may not know but who Allah does know. And whatever you shall spend in the cause of Allah shall be repaid unto you.’’