Zakaria Zubeidi - Amnesty

Amnesty

On July 15, 2007, the Office of the Israeli Prime Minister announced that Israel would include Zubeidi in an amnesty offered to militants of Fatah's al-Aqsa-Brigades. As of 2008, he was hired by Juliano Mer-Khamis (now deceased) as director of the Freedom Theatre in the Jenin refugee camp, where children can study theatre and experience the growing art and music culture surrounding the Palestine International Film festivals.

In an interview on April 4, 2008, he stated that he still did not receive a full pardon by Israel, blaming the PA for "lying" to him. He continued to sleep at the PA's Jenin headquarters and received a salary of 1,050 NIS instead of previous 2000 NIS. Asked why he stopped fighting even when he did not receive a full pardon, Zubeidi answered "because of the conflict between Fatah and Hamas. Look, it's perfectly clear to me that we won't be able to defeat Israel. My aim was for us, by means of the resistance, to get a message out to the world. Back in Abu 'Ammar's day, we had a plan, there was a strategy, and we would carry his orders... now there's no one capable of using our actions to bring about... achievements." Zubeidi criticized the PA leadership, saying "they are whores. Our leadership is garbage." Faced with the question of whether or not he admitted defeat he claimed "Even Gamal Abdel Nasser admitted his defeat, so why not me?"

Prior to Fatah's Sixth Conference in August 2009, Zubeidi called for fellow Fatah to adopt a program of resistance in case peace negotiations with Israel fail and lead to a Third Intifada. Although he was accredited as a Fatah delegate, one of 2,000, to the conference in Bethlehem, Zubeidi was momentarily refused entry to the meeting hall, resulting in condemnations by al-Aqsa Brigade members in Nablus and Jenin, as well as those outside of the Palestinian territories, who described the move as "stabbing the resistance in the back." Fatah officials allowed him to attend on August 5, 2009. The PA was also asked by brigade members to ensure Zubeidi's safety from Bethlehem back to Jenin. A number of right-wing Israeli Knesset members submitted a petition to the Israeli military court on August 6 calling for the arrest of Zubeidi because his "hands have Israeli blood ," despite being granted amnesty. Giving a speech at the conference the same day, Zubeidi suggested the Fatah-ruled West Bank reunite with the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip through force, if necessary. He criticized the "old leadership," condemning them for failing the Palestinian people, saying "During 18 years of negotiations, no hope has been created." Zubeidi suggested a younger generation of Palestinians should lead Fatah.