The real prize for terrorism

As expected, Labor Party Chairman Amram Mitzna's promise to withdraw from most of the territories, with or without an agreement, drew fire from the right. Two and a half years after the unilateral withdrawal from the killing fields of Lebanon, the argument that rescuing the soldiers from their colonolialist mission in Gaza will be interpreted as a "prize to the terrorists." Some say the Lebanon withdrawal in May 2000 proved to the Palestinians that Israelis only understand force. So, they say, the "surrender in Lebanon" led to the outbreak of the intifada four months later. According to that logic, Israeli soldiers should have bled to death in Lebanon to this day. After all, if Syria were to get up and remove Hezbollah from the northern border, the Damascus papers would rightfully write that it's a prize for settlement expansion on the Golan Heights.
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Behind the curtain of ambiguity

During a United Nations General Assembly debate last week on the Palestine issue, Israel's ambassador to the UN, Dr. Yehuda Lancry, said Israel accepts the vision of two states living side by side in peace and security.

Lancry's statement indicated it drew its inspiration from the vision of peace articulated by U.S. President George W. Bush on June 24. The Lancry statement was recorded and published in the official registry of the UN. During the weekend, Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon told a gathering of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy that "at the end of the day, most of the settlements will be evacuated." The Ya'alon quotes from his lecture were accurately documented by those present and given to Ha'aretz correspondent in Washington, Nathan Guttman.

A short while after Lancry's statement was reported, the Prime Minister's Office issued a statement saying Lancry's statement had nothing to do with Ariel Sharon. Foreign Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed his ministry to issue a statement to the effect that Lancry's speech did not reflect government policy and that the statement of disassociation was coordinated with the prime minister. The report about the chief of staff's remarks regarding evacuation of the settlements was accompanied by Ya'alon's own denials and reservations expressed by the political echelon.
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