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and negotlatlons with Syria, Peres has tried, initially, to move more
boldly than Rabin, but the outcome is not really in Israel's hands. The
Syrians, it seems to me, are not really interested in any serious normaliza–
tion of their relations with Israel, least of all in opening up what is
essentially a police state resistant to any hint of democratization. Their
notion of negotation is to continue the Lebanese War by proxy against
Israel, turning a blind eye to Hezbollah assaults on the Jewish State,
which they could easily halt. Moreover, they are allied with Iran, cur–
rently Israel's worst enemy in the Middle East. In any case, their real
objective in negotations with Israel has always been to change United
States policy and gain American acquiescence for their ambitions in the
Middle East.
Syrian concern is much more with Lebanon and ensuring their he–
gemony there, rather than with the Golan as such. Obviously, they
would not refuse to accept the strategically important Golan Heights if it
could be obtained without any serious concessions. But not even Mr.
Peres could afford that. He knows that there is no majority in Israel for
returning the Golan, which would be a highly unpopular and imprudent
move. Syria's intransigence has made things easier for him, especially in
electoral terms.
Lebanon is another matter, since this is the one border with Israel
which remains in a constant state of tension. The threat posed by
Hezbollah - which is partly an extension of the Iranian determination to
strike out at Israel - could be neutralized by Syria. But the Syrians have
shown no inclination to do this, which suggests that the prospects of any
deal with Syria are still remote.
Jerusalem, however, presents a different and (for someone like myself,
who actually lives there) a very disturbing aspect of the current govern–
ment policy.
It
was vividly brought home to me about a month ago,
when I was at the Van Leer Institute situated in the center ofJerusalem. I
stepped out from the Institute onto a balcony. A woman who was stand–
.ing there, overlooking the beautiful garden, pointed in the direction of
Bethlehem and said to me, "Well, that's the Palestinian Authority now."
This information, of course, was not new to me, but it still registered as
something of a shock, given the incredibly small distances involved. Since
the West Bank cities (except for Hebron) have already been handed over
under Oslo II, Israel has faced a potential security nightmare. The possi–
bilities of terrorist violence are all too obvious, as recent events have
demonstrated, and in Jerusalem (unlike most cities in Israel), the prospects
of erecting a Chinese wall of separation from the Palestinian Arabs are
virtually
nil,
even
if
this were desirable.
