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Barak's Balagan

hud Barak: "I believe if Yasser Araft accepts things as they were present-
ed by President Clinton, we are also compelled to accept them."
Since when?
Has Israel so run out of choices that it must agree to a U.S. plan just
because the former (and present) terrorist decides for the moment that he won't be
assassinated if he accedes to Clinton's drive to write a final chapter on his presidency?
It iS hard not to get into the merits and demerits of the plan itself Obviously,
the hardest part would be accepting the idea of exclusive Palestinian sovereignty
over the Temple Mount. Given the recent pronouncements by the Muslim clerics
that the First and Second Temples
are a Jewish myth, and the wanton
destruction of Jewish shrines over the
last three months of violence, it is
pretty hard to accept the idea that
they will scrupulously protect
Judaism's holiest site. The way the
Jordanians treated the Temple Mount
and environs before 1967, not to
mention the destruction of virtually
all of the religious edifices in the Jew-
ish Quarter between 1948 and 1967,
reinforces the bad track record on
Jewish shrines.
Then again, the Palestinians have
had day-to-day control of the Haram
al-Sharif for years, so perhaps that arrangement can be made to work. And surely it
would be just as agonizing for many Palestinians to surrender permanently their life-
long dream of returning to homes their families once owned in Israel. Many will
approach the idea of accepting Israel's right to exist with the same wrenching nausea
Jews feel in contemplating a redivided Jerusalem. Guaranteeing the safety of Jewish
settlements over the Green Line will feel like handfuls of salt in already deep wounds.
But the point is not the terms of the deal. Rather it is that Barak, having
resigned as prime minister so that he can seek a new public mandate, has absolute-
ly no right to continue negotiating anything. He needs to get it though his head
that he is a caretaker premier and will remain so until the voters on Feb. 6 decide
where they want Israel to go. He should be telling Bill Clinton politely that he
appreciates all the U.S. president has
done to broker a meaningful peace
pact but that the deadline has come
and gone.
Barak will have plenty of oppor-
tunity in the coming five weeks to
explain why his dovishness is preferable
to Ariel Sharon's tough-guy image. He
should use the campaign as a time to
listen to the country and to build
public understanding of why he
V
believes the pain of ceding part of
Jerusalem is more than offset by the
promise of a peace that disarms the Arab will to push Israel into the sea.
As a practical matter, of course, Barak has little leverage to win Knesset agree-
ment to whatever deal he cuts now. How could he count on Shas, for example,
when its sages are saying they would support Sharon in exchange for expanding
yeshiva student waivers from military service?
If Barak prevails in the election, however, even this deeply divided Knesset will
almost certainly be forced to rally around a new set of negotiations that build on
the progress made in Washington in the last couple of weeks. And if Barak loses,
Sharon should not have his hands tied by a flawed agreement reached in haste
with a leader who has proved as unreliable as Arafat.
It's all a balagan, a mess. A hasty peace deal now isn't the recipe for cleaning it
up. ❑

As a practical matter,
of course, Barak has
little leverage to win
Knesset agreement
to whatever deal
he cuts now.

Related coverage: page 22

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LETTERS

Who Is To Say

Who Can Pray?

If Peggy Letvin ("Understanding
The Role Of Women," Dec. 15,
page 37) and other Orthodox
women are satisfied to pray silently
behind the mechitzah (dividing
wall) in their synagogue, that is
their choice.
There are a number of Ortho-
dox women who do want to partic-
ipate in the synagogue service.
Their solution is to hold separate
women's services. Non-Orthodox
women rejoice that there is inte-
grated seating in their synagogue
and they can participate in the
most inspiring experiences of the
services.
Hannah's silent prayer, which
Peggy Let-yin praises, became the
basis for the silent Amidah (stand-
ing service), which is observed by

both men and women at every ser-
vice. Hannah, in addition, com-
posed and recited a magnificent
prayer (I Samuel 2:1-10), which is
chanted every year at Rosh
Hashanah services.
I would add the example of the
prophetess Deborah who led the
Jewish people in songs of thanks-
giving to God (judges 5:1-31).
Silence is not always tradition.
The group of Israeli women,
Orthodox, Conservative and
Reform, who hold a service every
Rosh Hodesh (new month) at the
Western Wall fulfill their family
responsibilities. Like Deborah, they
use their intellects and talents for
the good of the community, and
they joyfully sing their devotion to
God. They deserve our praise.
Shoshana Wolok

Oak Park

LETTERS on page 32