Israel Taking Stance of ‘Us Against World’

Reeling from what one newspaper called a slap in the face, official Israel took an us-against-the-world stance Thursday in response to the opening of contacts between the United States, its ally, and the Palestine Liberation Organization, its foe.

In contrast to Israeli government discomfort, Palestinian activists on the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip were jubilant, seeing in the U.S. move a stunning breakthrough for their cause of independence.

The basis for the differing reactions was evident. Israel feels an increasing sense of isolation over its Middle East policy, while Palestinians can see that their quest for statehood is gaining world attention. Both sides view the U.S. decision as a turning point in the long battle between Israel and the Palestinians over who rules the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.

Mixed Opinion

Opinion among Israeli citizens was mixed. Some were upset, some shrugged it off and a few saw it as an opportunity to stir new life into a stagnant situation.

The most defiant reaction came from the office of Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir. His top adviser, Cabinet Secretary Yossi Ben-Aharon, said that the United States and the West have deceived themselves by thinking that the PLO under Yasser Arafat has moderated its old terrorist strategy and now deserves direct diplomatic contacts. Israel, he advised, would not be so fooled.

“We will continue to look at things as they are, even if all the world is against us,” Ben-Aharon said. “We have been isolated in the past.

“The United States is one country, we are another,” he added. “We have to live with the Arabs. We cannot afford to make mistakes.”

Ben-Aharon said that Israel will not meet with the PLO under any circumstances. He repeated Israel’s characterization of the PLO as a terrorist group and said that Washington, by opening talks with the organization, will encourage terrorism.

Shamir’s aide also indirectly chided Secretary of State George P. Shultz for basing a policy change on soothing words uttered by Arafat during a Geneva press conference Wednesday, just a few weeks after Shultz barred the PLO leader from visiting the United States on grounds that he condoned and supported terrorist acts against Americans and “is therefore an accessory to such terrorism.”

“Is there now a determination by the United States that Arafat ceases to be a terrorist?” Ben-Aharon asked acidly.

Flaws Seen by Israel

Ben-Aharon listed several Israeli-perceived flaws in the proposed U.S.-PLO contact. First, he said his government considers it a step toward recognition of a Palestinian state on Israel’s border, a current PLO demand, but something nearly all Israelis have long opposed.

Also, the United States did not consult with Israel over Washington’s policy change. Foreign Ministry sources said that Shultz rejected Israeli requests for such consultation, and as a result of that rebuff, the Israelis were taken by surprise when the news broke early Thursday.

Finally, Ben-Aharon repeated the Israeli contention that the PLO has still failed to meet basic American conditions for the opening of talks: It neither renounced terrorism, recognized Israel nor accepted U.N. resolutions that guarantee Israel’s security as a basis for peace talks, he said.

His words ran counter to Shultz’s statement Wednesday in which the secretary said that the PLO, by explicitly addressing those points, had finally satisfied Washington’s conditions for direct talks with the PLO.

“We hope this is a passing phase,” Ben-Aharon concluded on the U.S. step. “We hope this is a slip--a short one.”

Ben-Aharon went out of his way to ensure reporters that the disagreement will not harm Israel’s “wide-ranging” relations with Washington. The United States provides Israel with $3 billion a year in aid. The two allies have signed a free trade agreement and cooperate militarily.

However, Israeli officials described a Thursday meeting between Shamir and U.S. Ambassador Thomas R. Pickering, who delivered a letter from Shultz, as unpleasant.

Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, in what may be his swan song as Israel’s foreign policy chief, tried to smooth over differences with Washington while offering his own plan for Middle East talks.

“We disagree as friends,” he said.

Peres predicted that American illusions about PLO moderation could be easily shattered. “All it takes to show that they haven’t given up on terrorism is one Molotov cocktail,” he said on Israel Radio.

Peres revived his call for elections on the West Bank and Gaza Strip designed to choose Palestinian delegates to peace talks. The only requirement is that no candidate belong to the PLO, he said. Peres did not mention his previously held opinion that Israel should give up some land in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to the Arabs in return for peace.

It is far from clear how much Peres’ foreign policy opinions count any more. On Wednesday, he announced his willingness to accept the post of finance minister in a new government headed by Shamir, who leads the right-wing Likud Party and who is Peres’ political rival. Shamir is trying to forge a coalition between Likud and Peres’ center-left Labor Party. In effect, Peres is probably a lame duck.

‘Most Painful Slap’

Shamir is not eager to hold a Palestinian vote--his adviser Ben-Aharon mentioned nothing about that in his talk to reporters--and he opposes giving up any part of the West Bank or Gaza, both of which Israel occupied during the 1967 Six-Day War.

While the government grappled with the new situation, workaday Israelis woke up to big headlines giving the news of the American decision in alarming tones. The newspaper Hadashot called it the “most painful diplomatic slap in the face Israel has received.”

Added the daily newspaper Maariv: “It can be assumed that the PLO chief once again made a fool of the American.”

Opinion on the streets of Jerusalem included dismay over the U.S. action. Isolation was a common theme. “We are alone, and that could be a problem,” said Ora Zohar, a college professor. “I just don’t see evidence that the PLO has abandoned terrorism.”

Added Florence Alexander, an elderly American immigrant: “The United States should not have done that. We do not want to talk to those terrorists. On the other hand, if the Americans want to talk to them, we’ll have to wait and see what happens. We have no choice.”

Chaim Baruch, a high school student, was more upbeat, saying he saw some movement on the question of settling Israel’s long-running feud with the Arabs. “We get to test what the PLO really believes,” he said. “Let’s see if they are really sincere.”

Others took a stand similar to the government’s, saying that regardless of U.S. policy, Israel should maintain its own course of action. “Would Americans like the PLO claiming Texas?” asked a soldier, who requested that his name be kept out of print.

Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza Strip rejoiced at the unexpected turn of events and credited the persistence of their yearlong uprising against Israeli rule. Many of the Arabs are refugees from what is now Israel proper, while others are native to the areas.

Graffiti sprayed on a wall in the West Bank town of Ramallah read, “The American position is a victory for the uprising and Palestinian diplomacy.” A few young Palestinians marched in the street yelling, “Yes to the PLO!”

“Thanks to the uprising, the PLO and the United States are now working together,” said Hanna Siniora, the pro-PLO editor of the Arabic-language newspaper Al Fajr, published in Jerusalem.

Added Said Kanaan, a Palestine nationalist businessman in Nablus: “Now, American credibility is high. We welcome the decision and hope it will lead to real peace.”

Some Palestinians were relieved that Arafat’s words had brought results. Otherwise, they hinted, the uprising could have taken a more violent turn. “It helps keep the intifada on its political course of basically unarmed resistance,” said Mahdi Abdul Hadi, head of an Arab think tank in Jerusalem, using the Arabic name for the uprising.

The intifada against Israel has cost more than 300 Palestinian lives, according to U.N. figures. Nine Israeli Jews and one Israeli Arab have also been killed.

Taking note of the Palestinian satisfaction over the diplomatic events, Shamir aide Ben-Aharon noted that any celebration may be premature.

“We are still running the show. They are still in their camps,” he said, referring to the refugee camps that adjoin towns in both the West Bank and Gaza Strip. “That has not changed because of the American move. Nothing can be done without Israel. We shall stick to our guns.”