Trolling For Assad

Barak dangles the Golan, waits for Syria to grab it.

What Israel Wants--

• A phased Israeli withdrawal from the Golan to the

line.
.
• Extensive demilitarization and limitation of forces
on the Syrian side of the line.
• Other security arrangements, including an Israeli
presence for a period of years at the Mount
Hermon surveillance station, which would be oper-
ated by the United States.
• Diplomatic relations at an early stage of the with-
drawal process.
• Agreement among Israel, Syria and Lebanon that
would end the fighting in southern Lebanon and
enable Israeli troops to return home by the summer.

What Syria Wants

• An Israeli withdrawal before normalizing relations.

• A written commitment by Israel to withdraw

from the Golan before the formal resumption of the
negotiations.
• An end to the Israeli presence at the Hermon station.
• Both sides to demilitarize and limit their forces at
equal distances from the border.

over any of the eastern shore of the Sea of
Galilee to Syria.
Just the same, a withdrawal to the June
Jerusalem
4, 1967 line means a total pullback from
sraeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak has
the towering Golan to the Galilee valley
placed his latest bet in the strange
below. The geographical advantage secured
and frustrating poker game between
by the Israeli army during the Six-Day War
Israel and Syria.
would be completely surrendered.
Now it is up to the Syrians to either see
Barak, in a lengthy and carefully pre-
the bet and resume the stalled peace negoti-
pared policy review, claimed during a
ations, or fold and walk
marathon cabinet session
away from the game, per-
Sunday that his four prede-
Above right: Israeli foreign
haps for many years to
cessors had all, in effect,
minister David Levy, left,
come.
secretly offered Syrian
gestures as he speaks with
Israeli officials say the
President Hafez Assad this
Barak, right, at the beginning
decision must come from
same
total withdrawal.
of the cabinet meeting in
Damascus within weeks, or
The
difference was that
Jerusalem Feb. 27. Sitting
else, with the Clinton
now
Barak
was doing so for-
in center is Government
administration's term mov-
mally and, in effect, publicly.
secretary Itzhak Herizog
ing toward its end, the win-
Though he made the state-
dow of opportunity will
ment behind closed doors, his
close.
words were soon relayed to the media.
Barak's move, coordinated in advance with
Damascus viewed his comments as the first
Washington, was to state for the first time
confirmation of a long-held Syrian contention
that Israel is prepared to withdraw from the
that former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin
whole of the Golan Heights to the border
had told then-U.S. Secretary of State Warren
that existed before the 1967 Six-Day War.
Christopher he was willing to cede the Golan
The offer is still somewhat ambiguous
to Damascus in return for a full peace.
because, in Israel's view, that border is yet
Formal negotiations between Israel and
to be precisely demarcated. Moreover,
Syria resumed last December after being
Barak still insists that he will not hand
suspended for close to four years. The talks

DAVID LANDAU
Jewish Telegraphic Agency

AP Pho to/Nasser Shiyou khi

I

Masked Hamas members carrying models of weapons parade
with a portrait of their leader, Sheik Ahmed Yassin, as part of
an election campaign for student government at Hebron
University in the West Bank Feb, 27.

b.;

3/3

2000

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