Friday, April 29, 1903 13

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

Harkabi Says Israel's WB Options are 'Bad and Worse'

By YITZHAK RABI

NEW YORK (JTA) —
One of the, world's leading
experts on the Arab-Israeli
conflict claims that Israel
has two options regarding
the future of the West Bank:
one bad, the other worse.
Prof. Yehoshafat Har-
kabi, a former chief of Is-
rael's intelligence service
and presently a professor of
international relations and
Middle East studies at He-
brew University in
Jerusalem, told the Jewish
Telegraphic Agency, "The
choices Israel is facing are
not between good and bad,
but between bad and worse.
The worse for Israel is to
annex the west Bank. By
annexation, Israel will
solve some of its security
problems but, at the same
time, will signiicantly in-
crease the number of the
Arabs in the country, creat-
ing a new Jewish-Arab
state with many, many ten-
sions.
According to Harkabi,
who is also a general (res.)
in the Israeli army, "Israel
will become a new Belfast in
the Mideast. Such a state
will be an easy target for the
Arab countries. It will be a
weak and unstable state.
Furthermore, he said,
"Jews from other coun-
tries will not come to set-
tle in such a state and Is-
rael will be further iso-
lated in the international
community and in the
United Nations since (Se-
curity Council) Resolu-
tion 242, the only resolu-
tion accepted so far by
the Arabs and Israel as a
basis for a Mideast set-
tlement, does not recog-
nize annexation."
Harkabi warned that the
annexation of the West
Bank by Israel "would per-
petuate the Arab-Israeli
conflict. The Arabs are pre-
sently weak and Israel is
strong, but this situation
might change in the future
. . .

The other choice for Is-
rael, which he termed the
lesser of two evils, is to re-
linquish the West Bank, al-
though it would be to Is-
rael'd disadvantage from
the viewpoint of security,
Harkabi pointed out.
Nevergheless, he contin-
ued, "I believe it is the bet-
ter choice for Israel. I am not
a leftist. All I am interested
in is the welfare of Israel
and I reached the conclusion
that a moderate ,policy
would benefit Israel better
than a hawkish approach."
Harkabi, who was an ad-
viser on Arab affairs to both
Premier Yitzhak Rabin and
to Premier Menahem Begin
("I resigned as Begin's ad-
viser after a few months"),
said he is in favor or a "con-
ditional negotiation" be-
tween Israel and the Pales-
tine Liberation Organiza-
tion.
"I believe that a survey
among Palestinians
would prove that most of
them consider the PLO as
their representative," he
said. "This is an ugly
organization, no doubt,
by its actions and ideol-

YEHOSHAFAT HARKABI

ogy — but one does not
negotiate only with those
he loves."
Harkabi conceded that
"the public in Israel is not
willing to negotiate with
the PLO.
But I do not differentiate be-
tween the PLO and the
Palestinians. If we will not
negotiate with them, we
will perpetuate the conflict.
Perpetuation of the conflict
is not in Israel's interest."
Begin's policy toward the
Palestinians "is not realis-
tic," he observed. "The ap-
proach of Israel toward
solving the Arab-Israeli

conflict is not realistic."
Harkabi's contention that
Begin's policy toward the
Palestinians is not realistic
is in line with the major
thesis in his book, "The Bar
Kokhba Syndrome" (Rossel
Books). The English-
language edition was re-
leased in New York last
week. The Hebrew-
language edition appeared
last year in Israel and
caused a fierce controversy
there.
In it, Harkabi claims
that Bar Kokhba, the
legendary Jewish hero,
waged a futile and very
unrealistic revolt against
the Roman occupation of
Israel in the years 132-135
C.E. The Bar Kokhba re-
bellion resulted in the de-
struction of Judea and
the exile of the Jewish
population and its dis-
persion around the
world.
"The Bar Kokhba exam-
ple teaches us a lesson about
the value of realism," Har-
kabi said. "My criticism of
Bar Kokhba is an instru-
ment with which I hope to
induce realistic thinking in
today's Israel and among
the Jewish people. Once a
people changes its view of
the past, then it will change

the future and its behavior
in the future. A prospect on
the past can bring changes
in the present."
Turning to current de-
velopments, Harkabi said
that he does not think that
King Hussein's rejection re-
cently of negotiations with
Israel is final. "Without a
settlement of the Arab-
Israeli conflict the Arabs
will have to prepare for a
major new confrontation
with Israel," Harkabi said.
"Such a confrontation is not
possible without major
political changes and even

revolutions in the Arab
countries.
Hussein, along with
Saudi Arabia's rulers and
those of other Arab coun-
tries "are most afraid of
these changes," Harkabi
observed. "Hussein under-
stands that without pro-
gress in the Mideast the
whole Arab world will be
engulfed in turmoil. There-
fore, it is in Hussein's inter-
est to want to find a settle-
ment.
"I think, however, that
as long as Israel con-
tinues with implementing

settlements on the West
Bank he cannot enter
into negotiations, be-
cause if he does, it is as if
he endorses Israeli set-
tlements."

Confidence, like the soul,
never returns whence it has
once departed.
—Publilus Syrus

TERRY I. BERLIN

FAST, COMPREHENSIVE
LEGAL SERVICES
phone 353-1474

ilAIIM

'V T

DIAMOND
LINCOLN/MERCURY, INC.

221 North Main St., Royal Oak, Michigan 48067
541-8830

"The New Name in Town
Where the Smart Money Buys"

NORMAN ALLAN, Founder/Consultant

LAWRENCE M. ALLAN, President

Gemologist

Diamontologist

Established 1919

GOLD SALE

Newly Purchased Bankruptcy Inventory

from

.

Attorney At Law

9 3 99

per gram

Bracelets • Necklaces • Chains

"The Best Thing Since Wholesale"

All New Fresh Stock

rake Advantage of these 3antastie I3argains.1

Awarded Certificate by GIA in Grading & Evaluation

30400 TELEGRAPH ROAD • SUITES 104/134 • BIRMINGHAM, MICHIGAN 48010 • (313) 642-5575

Daily til 5:30, Sat. by appt.

•

A

.1.1,-ab-ItKil ■ ge.s-

