TIME: Almanac 1993/TIME Almanac 1993.iso/time/120291/1202102.000

Text File | 1992-08-28 | 6KB | 120 lines

                                                                                NATION, Page 23

MIDDLE EAST

The Sweet Taste of Freedom


Two more hostages return, but questions swirl about Terry Waite's
links to U.S. arms-for-hostages dealings

By JILL SMOLOWE -- Reported by William Mader/London, Lara
Marlowe/Beirut and Jay Peterzell/Washington


    The performances by American educator Thomas Sutherland
and British church envoy Terry Waite as they emerged last week
from years of captivity testified to the remarkable resiliency
of the human spirit. Sutherland, 60, who spent most of his
2,347 days as a hostage in Lebanon tethered by ankle chains to
a wall, calmly alternated tales of senseless beatings and
profound depression with lighthearted quips about Waite, who,
he reported, "snores awfully loudly." Waite, 52, limping from
his years in chains, reported, "I was kept in total and complete
isolation for four years." Yet 1,763 days in windowless cells
neither dimmed his megawatt smile nor diminished his faith in
mankind's basic goodness. "I trust the Hizballah," he said of
the very people whose double-crossing cost almost five years of
his life.

     Waite was referring to his captors' pledge to free by the
end of November the three remaining American hostages, among
them journalist Terry Anderson. There seemed great promise that
the hostage drama was coming to an end. In Lebanon, Hizballah
said the fate of the remaining Western hostages was no longer
linked to freedom for 300-odd Arab prisoners held by Israel's
proxy militia in south Lebanon. An announcement by U.S.
officials that Washington and Tehran were nearing agreement on
payment of $275 million owed to Iran for undelivered military
equipment dating back to 1979 sweetened the prospect of a
resolution. Both Syria and Iran continued to speed the process
along in order to gain access to Western economic assistance.
Still, the time frame remains iffy: Tehran radio said the
hostages would be home by Christmas.

    For Sutherland, it was a bittersweet homecoming. Even as
he learned that his 88-year-old father-in-law had died just two
days earlier, he received word that one of his three daughters
was about to give birth. Sutherland seemed forgiving of his
captors, allowing, "I don't think they really thoroughly
understand what they were doing to us, putting those chains back
on our legs every day." Although he appeared healthy, the
discovery of an ulcer at week's end delayed his return to the
U.S.

    Britain's hostage ordeal ended with the return of Waite,
the high-profile envoy of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the
last British captive in Lebanon. But as bells joyously tolled
his freedom, the homecoming unleashed feverish speculation
about the role the U.S. -- and maybe Waite himself -- had played
in his capture. Did Waite know of Washington's secret arms
dealings? And was he a willing agent, or an unwitting
collaborator? Before his capture, Waite denied any knowledge of
the U.S. arms-for-hostages scheme.

    While the Briton began as a globe-trotting negotiator
acting for the Church of England, his efforts gradually meshed
with the U.S. campaign. Waite's ties to Lieut. Colonel Oliver
North, the point man in the doomed U.S. trade-off, are well doc
umented. Not only did the two men meet at least five times, but
the U.S. provided Waite with helicopters and other assistance
during some of his missions. By 1986, the captors had
intertwined Waite's efforts with the secret U.S. operation: each
time a weapons shipment was made to Iran, an Iranian official
would travel to Damascus, and North would signal Waite that the
time was ripe for him to visit his contacts in Beirut. With
these pieces in place, a hostage would be released and Waite
could claim credit.

    Waite may not have known of the arms payoff to Iran, but
plainly he cooperated with the U.S. In a December 1985 memo to
his superiors, North referred to Waite as "our only access to
events in Lebanon." Robert Oakley, the former head of the State
Department's Office for Counter-Terrorism, insists, "He knew our
efforts were responsible for his results." Waite sometimes
briefed American officials in Washington. He also relayed
messages between Hizballah and Washington, in a failed attempt
to spring the hostages in exchange for assurances that the 17
Hizballah prisoners held in Kuwait would at least not be
executed. Even admirers say that the envoy's vanity was as big
as his heart and that he reveled in the high-level contacts and
cloak-and-dagger maneuvers.

    By the time he made the last of at least five journeys to
Beirut, his position as a neutral mediator was seriously
compromised. Leaks emanating from the continuing investigation
of the Iran-contra affair, linked Waite with the U.S. operation.
Despite warnings from his own government and church, he made a
final trip in January 1987, largely to clear his name of the
Iran-contra taint. Once there, he insisted that he had never
discussed arms-for-hostages deals with anyone. "If I had," he
told reporters, "then I would be too afraid and I wouldn't be
back here now."

    As the controversy swirls, the families of the remaining
hostages gird for what appears to be the final act of their long
vigil. Yet even as the clouds lifted, a Lebanese Shi`ite who is
close to the Islamic Jihad kidnappers issued a stern warning.
"If the U.S. or Israel attacks Islamic Jihad, there will be
clear, definitive and irreversible revenge through
assassination," he threatened. "American ambassadors will be
assassinated in the Middle East or in Europe." And so, on it
goes.