Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak said Saturday that Israeli electors must choose between him and war in the upcoming election.
Barak, quoted by a Russian news agency, said that his uphill bid for re-election has no influence over the decisions he is making in the process of resolving the Israeli-Palestinian crisis.
"I will not permit myself the slightest compromise that I would not have made in a normal situation," Arafat was quoted by the Interfax news agency here as saying. "I will know what to do even if I lose the post of prime minister," he added.
If any proposal served "to protect Israel, guarantee its safety, preserve its national identity and, at the same time, stop our military cemeteries from expanding," he would take the step, Barak said.
This "direct and truthful approach" just might help him win the re-election, he said.
"In fact the choice is between Barak and war," he claimed.
Barak also praised Russia's "special, very important" role as mediator in the Middle East peace process, saying that the Israeli side keeps Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov informed of the way the peace talks are developing.
Together with the United States, Russia is a co-sponsor of the Middle East process, but its formerly significant influence in the region has drastically waned and its mediation efforts have ended in failure.
Earlier Barak declared he would not sign any peace accord that grants Palestinians sovereignty over east Jerusalem's Haram al-Sharif mosque compound, or Temple Mount, a holy site to both Muslims and Jews.
However, Barak has left open a door for compromise, saying he will accept proposals by US President Bill Clinton if the Palestinians do.
The Clinton plan would give Palestinians 94 to 96 percent of the West Bank while 80 percent of Jewish settlers would remain on land "blocks," minimizing the number of areas annexed by Israel and ensuring the contiguity of a Palestinian state.
The Palestinians would also be granted sovereignty over Jerusalem's Arab neighborhoods and the Haram al-Sharif mosque compound, a holy site to Muslims.
However, Israel would retain sovereignty over the Western Wall, the most sacred shrine for Jews, which lies below the Haram al-Sharif.
The plan also calls for Israel to recognize the Palestinian refugees' right of return and to assist an international commission in resettling and compensating the refugees.
However, Israel would have the right to admit refugees at its own discretion.
Israel's right wing has rejected the entire plan and warned that Barak lacks the mandate to make such compromises.
Right-wing opposition leader Ariel Sharon has widened his lead over Barak among voters to a record 21 percentage points, according to a Gallup poll published Friday by the Israeli daily Maariv.
At the same time, a narrow majority of those surveyed object to concluding a peace deal with the Palestinians before the February 6 elections and an even larger majority consider that Barak has no mandate to do a deal -- MOSCOW (AFP)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
