Two Palestinian militants from the siege at Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity are expected to arrive in Ireland tomorrow to take up a year's temporary residence. They are part of a group of 13 Palestinians who were initially deported to Cyprus under an agreement which brought an end to the five-week stand-off at the church.
A Spanish military plane flew to Cyprus last night to pick up 12 of the men for dispersal to six EU member states. The plane was expected to bring two of them to Athens today, three to Rome and the rest to Madrid. Three of the seven brought to Madrid would remain in Spain, while two of them would go to Ireland and one each to Portugal and Belgium.
The group has been described by Israel as the "most wanted of wanted men". It is understood that the six most experienced activists have been divided equally between the host countries, who will take one each.
Government sources said it was hoped transport for the pair coming to Ireland would be provided by the Spanish authorities. They will, in effect, have the status of temporary refugees, granted on humanitarian grounds under the 1935 Aliens Act.
They will not be jailed but will not be permitted to leave the State, either. If they have not returned to the Middle East within 12 months, their status will be reviewed and they may be eligible to apply for political asylum. Their families will be eligible to apply for entry to the State.
It was expected that the names of the men travelling to specific countries would not be released unless they gave their consent for this.
Accommodation for the pair coming to Ireland will be arranged initially by the Department of Justice but a Department spokesman said he could give no details as they were still being finalised.
It is understood that government offices received several offers of accommodation from members of the public and that the men will not be taking part in any public political activity. Israel has not officially ruled out the possibility of taking extradition proceedings although observers believe this is unlikely.
A Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman said: "The Government decision in this matter was taken to help implement the agreement reached between the government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
"Ireland has long been committed to assisting in the resolution of the problems in the Middle East and this action is concrete evidence of our desire to see peaceful solutions to these difficult problems.
"We are giving practical effect to what we have always advocated and the positions we have consistently conveyed to both sides in the United Nations and other international for a.
"All the Palestinians have indicated their gratitude to Europe for their reception and have given undertakings to observe and respect the laws and policies of the states which provide them with temporary homes."