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Netanyahu says Hebron deal within reach
November 27, 1996
Web posted at: 5:20 p.m. EST (2220 GMT)From Jerusalem Bureau Chief Walt Rodgers
JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Israel's demand that its soldiers be allowed total freedom to track down suspected terrorists has delayed an agreement with Palestinians on Hebron. But now there are signs that a deal on Israeli troop redeployment from the West Bank town may be close.
"I think we are ready to make the final touches on this agreement," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "I don't think it's beyond our means."
Many Israeli soldiers will be staying in Hebron, concentrated in neighborhoods with Jewish settlers who insist on living in an overwhelmingly Palestinian city. Protecting them has been Netanyahu's dilemma.
The prime minister said that he is looking for a lasting agreement.
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"If we do something that will not hold then we can sign and find ourselves with an explosion in our faces, and this is something I don't want," he said.
Syria still pessimistic
But if there has been progress toward a deal with the Palestinians on Hebron, there are no signs the Netanyahu government is close to persuading the Syrians to renew peace talks with Israel.
Indeed, Syria's Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa seemed as gloomy as ever about dealing with Netanyahu, whom he says "does not believe in peace." Syria's pessimism, he said, stems from Israel's "preparing the ground for new wars in the Middle East."
But Netanyahu has predicted he can negotiate peace with Syria within the next four years.
The Syrians remain the big holdouts in the Middle East peace process. And since Netanyahu's election, there have been renewed war jitters in the region, prompting one Israeli statesman to urge the prime minister to move quickly on the diplomatic front -- or else.
"If nothing will happen till the year 2000, we will wake up to discover a terrible Middle East, full of hatred, full of missiles," said Labor Party leader Shimon Peres.
The key to a more peaceful Middle East may lie in Washington. But after the frustrations the region brought U.S. President Bill Clinton in his first term, it is by no means certain he will devote the energy needed to broker peace here next time around.
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Related stories:
- Netanyahu: West Bank settlements will grow - November 26, 1996
- With no Hebron agreement, tensions escalate - November 24, 1996
- Hebron talks stall as Palestinians celebrate independence - November 14, 1996
- Phone call fails to clinch Israel-PLO deal - November 11, 1996
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