Bush visit transforms Abbas' Ramallah headquarters - Haaretz

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Fri., January 11, 2008 Shvat 4, 5768

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Bush visit transforms Abbas' Ramallah headquarters

By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent

Tags: Ramallah, Fayyad, Muqata

RAMALLAH - Even Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad was surprised when he walked into the press briefing room in the Muqata, government headquarters, Thursday.

"Wow, that's new," he said loudly, pointing at a large panel placed behind Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and U.S. President George W. Bush and covered by plastic sheeting painted to resemble a stone wall.

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eporters figured it was intended to act as a shock absorber in the event of an explosion. Near the podium was another U.S. import, bulletproof metal panels covered with black cloth that could provide protection for the president.

The security precautions at the Muqata Thursday were unprecedented. The journalists, who usually enter the complex without undergoing any scrutiny, began reporting in the early morning hours for a series of security checks that included a going-over by U.S. security personnel. At 5:30 A.M., Palestinian soldiers were deployed on the city's main streets.

Wearing helmets and braving cold and constant rain, they took up key positions on streets devoid of people or cars. Palestinian soldiers took the extraordinary step of stopping cars to check the occupants' identity cards.

Ramallah "enjoyed" a few hours of sleep Thursday morning. It was not until close to noon that traffic began flowing on the streets that were not barricaded. Security forces were posted to rooftops overlooking the Muqata, and residents were told not to leave their homes or even to look out their windows.

Al-Irsal Street, one of the city's busiest commercial thoroughfares, was closed off until the Bush motorcade left. In Manara Square around noon, the police tangled with people protesting Bush's visit. The demonstration, organized by Palestinian leftists, was dispersed with the use of great violence, including teargas.

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