The Movement for Reform Judaism

On a visit to Istanbul in January 2004 he happened to stay in the same hotel as President Assad of Syria and his entourage. They were there on an official visit. Turkish intermediaries told Dr Liel that Syria wanted to talk peace with Israel. However, when approached by Liel, the Israeli government refused to participate. He and one or two others could only hold non-binding off-the-record talks. The Turks soon tired of it and then the Swiss took over, despite their disappointment with the Geneva Accord that led to nowhere.

Though over time issues were hammered out and a potential agreement between Israel and Syria could be mapped out, nothing came of it. Such an agreement would involve swapping territories between Israel, Jordan and Syria as well as ceding much of Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

No amount of urging by Liel could persuade the Israeli government to second even a junior official to the talks. Such a presence would have been an indication that Israel was serious. The Syrians were willing to send an official of corresponding rank. At one point, Dr Ibrahim Suleiman, the distinguished the Syrian-American who unofficially represented the Syrian government, explicitly warned the Israelis that, if there wasn't going to be peace, there would be war. Last summer's proxy war that Syria (and Iran) conducted with Hezbollah as a front is the evidence.

The situation became reminiscent of the attempt by Anwar Sadat soon after he came to power to talk to the Israelis. He got a definite No from Golda Meir, who until Ehud Olmert was arguably the worst Prime Minister Israel has had. In the 1970s Golda underestimated Sadat of Egypt, just as first Sharon and now Olmert underestimate Assad of Syria thirty years later. The result then was the Yom Kippur War. Some years later, Sadat visited Israel and peace was made between the two countries. It could have been made before the bloodshed. What will the result be this time?

Olmert's argument has been that the United States wouldn't let the Israelis speak to the Syrians. It has now been confirmed by the US ambassador to Israel that no such pressure was ever put on Israel. The issue wasn't even mentioned. In fact, the United States is now talking to Syrians, so far only on the level of fairly junior officials.

Until a few weeks ago, what had once been a secret entered the public domain. In fact, both Dr Liel and Dr Suleiman will soon appear before the relevant committee of the Knesset to give testimony. The matter is discussed freely and often in the press and elsewhere. I heard Liel say all this last night at a public meeting in Jerusalem.

Eli Podeh
The other speaker was Professor Eli Podeh of the Hebrew University, an expert on Islam. If Liel sounded passionate and partisan, Podeh was cool and academic. Nevertheless he totally agreed with Liel. He offered five reasons why the time is ripe for Israel to talk to Syria now:

            1. The talks with the Palestinians are going nowhere. The internal war between Hamas and Fatah will continue for years. As long as these are going on, it's impossible to come to an agreement with the Palestinians, whether or not they have an ostensible unity government. Olmert and Abu Mazen keep meeting and achieving nothing.

            2. An agreement with Syria would weaken the Palestinians, because it would involve the end of Syrian support for Hamas. For this reason Fatah is very keen for Israel to talk to Syria. In other words, an agreement with Syria would make peace with Palestinians considerably more possible.

            3. The agreement between Syria and Iran is unnatural. They are divided by religion. It has come about because of Syria's desperate need for an ally, but the alliance could be broken if there were incentives to do so, such as the prospect of peace.

            4. Compared to the complex issues in the Israel-Palestinian conflict, the Syrian agreement is much easier to reach.

            5. In the past, whenever an Arab state has wanted to talk with Israel, Israel has agreed.  Why not this time?

Golan Heights
Both speakers agreed that the answer to this question is the Israeli government's fear to upset the Golan lobby. It was obvious that the government didn't want to talk to Syria and have to put the Golan Heights on the negotiating table when it had to deal with the vociferous lobby that opposed the withdrawal from Gaza. But that has now receded.

Opinion polls still suggest that the overwhelming majority of Israelis don't want to give up the Golan Heights, even at the price of war. Both Israel and Syria know that the latter cannot conquer the Golan by war. Hence the Israeli decision to sit it out.

But it's a short-sighted decision, because Syria now has rockets that probably can reach Tel Aviv. Such rocket attacks would cost many lives and cause both panic and much damage. The effect of Iranian-Syrian rocket attacks on Northern Israel during the second Lebanon war should be a reminder and a warning.

Ehud Olmert
It's clear to all that only a strong government and a resolute Prime Minister could confront the issue and, despite public opinion and a hysterical lobby, at least start negotiations. Of course, Israel doesn't have such a government. We vainly speculate: Would it have been different with Sharon at the helm?

The government of Israel should have its hands full with the revived Saudi initiative, the prospect of a Palestinian unity government and the Syrian possibility. It's obvious that it can't act on all three fronts at the same time. But it should act on at least one, and Syria may be it.

The inaction despite the spin could bring the government to its heels. But probably the Winograd Commission will. It has been charged with analyzing the conduct of last summer's war. When its interim report appears next month, it's likely to point accusing fingers at the leaders of the two main coalition parties: Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minster Amir Peretz. Not surprisingly, therefore, they are preoccupied with themselves, not with the country. And we're the losers.

 Jerusalem 14.3.07

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed