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Jewish World Review Dec. 14, 2000 / 17 Kislev, 5761
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A method to Barak's madness
http://www.jewishworldreview.com --
DOES EHUD BARAK have an ace up his sleeve in resigning
and calling for elections? Insiders in his One Israel
Labor Party claim he does, and that it's a peace deal
with Yasser Arafat — one the Palestinian leader can't
refuse, at least not logically.
When the deal happens, Barak's insiders say, it will
push the right-wing Likud bloc out of the running, even
if its candidate is popular former Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu.
As these mostly dovish labor insiders tell it, Barak is
offering the Palestinians a phased peace treaty: first,
an agreement on firm borders that would include the
dismantling of some, but definitely not all, Israeli
settlements on the West Bank. Then, an Israeli
withdrawal from the large areas that fall under
Palestinian control. Third, and most important, Israeli
recognition of an independent Palestinian state coupled
with Israeli and U.S. commitments to do everything
economically possible to help the Palestinians succeed.
That, of course, leaves some of the prime thorns in this
100-year war sticking sharply in everyone's side,
notably the final status of the Holy City of Jerusalem
and the question of compensation and/or return of
Palestinian refugees from the 1948 Israeli War of
Independence. Any part of any one of those two subjects
could turn peace into war on any given Middle Eastern
day. And, in fact, it was Jerusalem, at least nominally,
that caused the final fracturing of the Camp David
negotiations that President Clinton hosted this year.
Nonetheless, the sources say that because these
outstanding issues could then be worked out on a state-
to-state basis after a cooling-off period, they could be
solved.
The best news: This proposal reportedly has the support
of Jordan's young King Abdullah and Egypt's President
Hosni Mubarak, both of whom have strong influence in the
Gaza court of the Emperor Yasser. Both the Jordanian and
Egyptian leaders, the sources say, are going to put the
squeeze on the Palestinians and urge them to give this
peace deal at least a chance.
The U.S. is sure to back it. Already there is serious
talk of Clinton winding up his White House days with a
flourish: a visit to the Middle East in the waning days
of his presidency and a giant personal surge to the
finish line with both Israelis and Palestinians. One of
Barak's top ministers was en route to Washington within
hours of the prime minister's weekend announcement,
specifically to push the Barak plan at the White House
and State Department.
Of course, the Palestinians have yet to be convinced of
anything along these lines. And in their inimitable
never-miss-an-opportunity-to-miss-an-opportunity
fashion, they could whine about this offer as well. The
difference is that Arafat & Co. know that if Barak has
no deal, he will likely lose the election to the Israeli
right wing — a far less compatible partner for the
Palestinians than Barak.
It's even possible that Barak's replacement would be
Netanyahu. Under current Israeli law, Bibi is barred
from running for prime minister because he is no longer
a member of the Israeli parliament. But if the U.S.
Supreme Court can involve itself in Florida's voting
law, then I suppose the Israeli Knesset can change its
rules,
By Richard Z. Chesnoff
JWR contributor and veteran journalist
Richard Z. Chesnoff is a senior correspondent at US News
And World Report and a columnist at the NY Daily News. His latest book is Pack of Thieves: How Hitler & Europe
Plundered the Jews and Committed the Greatest Theft in History.
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