PLO OFFICIALS SAY ABU NIDAL'S GROUP IS THE

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 00594 E.O. 12356: DECL: OADR TAGS: PREL PTER KPAL JO SY XF SUBJECT: PLO OFFICIALS SAY ABU NIDAL'S GROUP IS THE BEST SUPPLIED IN SYRIA ¶1. (C - ENTIRE TEXT) ¶2. AN EMBASSY PALESTINIAN CONTACT HAS REPORTED TWO SEPARATE CONVERSATIONS WITH PLO OFFICIALS HERE ABOUT THE ABU NIDAL PRESENCE IN DAMASCUS. BOTH OFFICIALS--OMAR SHAKA'A, THE HEAD OF THE PLO POLITICAL DEPARTMENT OFFICE IN AMMAN AND A PROTOGEE OF FAROUK QADDUMI AND HAMADNEH FARANEH, A DFLP MEMBER WHO WAS RECENTLY ARRESTED BY GOJ OFFICIALS--THOUGHT IT CURIOUS THAT THE USG WAS REACTING SO FORCEFULLY TO SUSPECTED LIBYAN INVOLVEMENT IN THE ROME AND VIENNA TERRORIST INCIDENTS AND IGNORING SYRIA WHEN SYRIA, THEY SAID, WAS JUST AS INVOLVED AS LIBYA. ACCORDING TO BOTH MEN, ABU NIDAL'S OPERATIONS IN DAMASCUS ARE SUPPORTED MORE LAVISHLY BY THE SYRIANS THAN THOSE OF ANY OTHER PALESTINIAN GROUP--THEY GET MORE MONEY, BETTER FACILITIES, BETTER TRAINING, AND BETTER EQUIPMENT THAN ANYBODY ELSE. COMMENT: WE CANNOT COMMENT ON THE ACCURACY OF THESE OBSERVATIONS, BUT PASS THEM ALONG AS INDICATING THE PERCEPTIONS OF PALESTINIANS IN JORDAN. GNEHM