Subscribe to Print Edition | Sun., November 30, 2008 Kislev 3, 5769 | | Israel Time: 01:20 (EST+7)   Back to Homepage web haaretz.com Haaretz Toolbar Diplomacy Defense Jewish World Opinion National Print Edition Car Rental Books Haaretz Magazine Business Real Estate GA 2008 Travel Week's End Anglo File

They've all been Yitzhak Shamir By Yossi Sarid Tags: Israel News They used to say about Yitzhak Shamir that he conducted peace negotiations with our neighbors as long as they never ended - the negotiations and the sea, which in his mind was the same sea, because the Arabs were the same Arabs. To his credit, it should be said that he did not conceal his intentions - he admitted them, if ever so slightly. Nothing was urgent for Shamir until everything started to become urgent. Every prime minister after him, with the exception of Yitzhak Rabin, behaved exactly like he did, though they added whistles and bells to the foot-dragging. If the rumors are true and history really does have a muse, he will one day convene a press conference and utter his verdict: Shamir, Shimon Peres, Benjamin Netanyahu, Ehud Barak, Ariel Sharon and Ehud Olmert are in fact the same dancer - one step forward, two steps back, and to the sides. Will Tzipi Livni also turn out to be a dancer in this troupe? Each one loves to take but hates to give, becomes addicted to talks on condition that there won't be any results, plants the trees of life yet loathes the fruit of knowledge. This is how it goes. We set a table with the Palestinian side - Palestine first - because the Palestinian problem is "the heart of the conflict," as we all know. On the path to an agreement, we turn over every stone. This too is common knowledge. Advertisement Suddenly it becomes clear that the matter is not at all simple; it's quite complex for the most part. The negotiations are to this point advancing smoothly, 90 percent of the issues have been satisfactorily addressed, and it is already possible to see the end from certain vantage points. They turn pale with this end. This end is our end, they will tell themselves and their confidants. Ultimately we will have to withdraw to the '67 lines, divide Jerusalem into two capitals and uproot settlements. And how will we bring about this end without a civil war, as Peres predicted recently from distant London, the things that are seen from there. At this fateful stage, a moment before the disaster, they are abandoning the Palestinian track while being led astray, and they are urgently opening an alternative track; after all, Israel is a country that has naturally yearned for peace since its birth, its show must go on, and we mustn't close the gates to the theater of peace. What do you know, they discover the Syrian track, which looks more comfortable and promising. Syria, after all, is a state and not just a gang. Oh my - quickly it becomes apparent that this ground is also treacherous, full of potholes. One hasty step and we fall into the chasm. But only one step lies between Israel and a complete withdrawal from the Golan Heights. Thus there is no choice but to click away at the remote control and go back to Channel 1. Carefully, this time. No more talk of a final agreement on all the core issues, but measured, interim steps - baby steps. And if, God forbid, we once again get stuck, we can always go back to Channel 2, and back to the start, and God forbid we get an agreement. Barak is just one typical example of the pre-signing cold-feet syndrome. When he was elected prime minister with all the hoopla - those were the days. The hopes of Israelis and Palestinians were rekindled that the Oslo process would be resurrected and implemented, after the miserable years of Bibi that did away with the light at the end of the Western Wall tunnel. It didn't take long for the hopes to fade. Barak revealed Yasser Arafat's true face, as well as his own. Without defacing precious time he skipped to the Syrian track, bottled that up as well, returned to the Palestinian track, got confused by the difference between interim agreements and final-status agreements, and his mind did not cool off like his feet until he bequeathed to us the second intifada. What do we do when stuck on two tracks at once? Simple: Pull the Saudi peace initiative off the shelf, which became the pan-Arab "Beirut Declaration," which has become a hit of late. For over six years now it has been sitting frozen in the back of the kitchen, and suddenly it is put on the table as if it were warmed-up soup. Why it was forgotten for too long, why Peres and Barak suddenly remembered it - this is not important now. The main thing is that now it can be used to buy more time, to do as Shamir did and request a salary as Nobel Peace Prize laureates. Until they find time for negotiations on a regional agreement, there will be more time-outs for the bizarre "economic peace" of Netanyahu and the "viable peace for generations," which will come upon us in the distant future only from "a position of strength" and after "a decisive victory" and a "searing of the consciousness" Moshe Ya'alon-style. You'll have your peace through trickery: traveling the longest route, crossing the dividing lines, going around in circles like a Formula 1 race and finishing at the starting line. This is the point we are at now. This is the formula. Bookmark to del.icio.us   A real mensch Chabad leaders say the slain rabbi's only concern was helping Jews away from home. An immodest proposal Likud MK suggests using Palestinian prisoners as human shields against Qassams.

Read & React 9 dead in Mumbai Chabad house assault; Israel to help identify bodies Responses: 420 ANALYSIS / Is Al-Qaida behind the Mumbai terror attacks? Responses: 138 Roni Bart: Obama only makes demands of Israel, not the Palestinians Responses: 142 Anshel Pfeffer: U.S. Jews jealous of Israelis who don't have to grapple with Jewish identity Responses: 94 More Headlines 00:29 9 dead in Mumbai Chabad house attack; Israel to help identify bodies 00:58 At Chabad house, Israeli paramedics checked the dead as crowd hailed the soldiers 01:11 Tensions escalate between India and Pakistan in wake of Mumbai attacks 00:32 ANALYSIS / Are the Mumbai attacks Obama's first test? 00:37 Indian media react angrily to Israeli criticism of Chabad rescue operation 00:40 Israeli survivors: We used our cell phones to keep in touch with each other 19:57 What do Israeli sex tourists in Thailand really think? 17:40 Two Palestinians, two settlers injured in clashes in Hebron 21:40 Likud MK calls for using Palestinian prisoners as human shields against Qassam rockets 12:31 8 IDF troops hurt in W. Negev mortar strike, soldier loses leg 14:38 Ahmadinejad blames West for spreading economic crisis to world 03:14 First U.S. ambassador to Libya in three decades to arrive in December 22:02 Police suspect elderly couple in Haifa attempted to commit suicide Previous Editions Select Day 28 nov 27 nov 26 nov 25 nov 24 nov 23 nov 21 nov 20 nov 19 nov 18 nov 17 nov 16 nov

Special Offers Advertisement Inbal Thanksgiving Sale Save up to 30% off reservations at the Finest Hotel in Jerusalem Living in Israel Studying in English Click & Meet our students from all around the world Living in Israel Studying in English Click & Meet our students from all around the world Dan Boutique Jerusalem New Dan Hotel in Jerusalem Young, Fun & Distinctively Dan Book Now Online! Fattal Hotel Chain Perfectly located hotels on best resorts of Israel. Car rental in Israel Shlomo Sixt Receive $15.00 from our low rates. Dial 013 for your long-distance calls and get all your money back US CITIZENS Vote for real change. Request your ballot today! Eldan Rent a Car Israel's leading car rental company offers you a 20% discount on all online reservations Jewish Singles Personal Ads Find the love of your life on JDate.com Israel's Premier Real Estate Website www. israel-property.com Hebrew Summer courses From $39.95 Junkyard Junk a car - get free towing nationwide and a tax-deductible receipt

Home | TV | Print Edition | Diplomacy | Opinion | Arts & Leisure | Sports | Jewish World | Underground | Site rules |

Real Estate in Israel | Travel to Israel with Haaretz | Hotels Israel | Restaurants Israel | Tourist attractions Israel | Shops Israel

birthright Israel | Search engine marketing

Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, offers real-time breaking news, opinions and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides extensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish World and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world and Jewish life in Israel and the Diaspora.

© Copyright  Haaretz. All rights reserved