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CNN Live At Daybreak
White House Waits for Israeli Reaction
Aired June 19, 2002 - 05:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Turning now to the hot spot that is the Middle East. President Bush's announcement of a framework for a Mideast peace process has been put on hold. White House officials want to see what Israel does after the latest deadly suicide bombing.
If you're wondering what's in Bush's proposal, though, CNN's John King has a peak.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The president's central goal is to get the Israelis and Palestinians back to the bargaining table, not to present a detailed new U.S. peace plan. But Mr. Bush does hope to offer a road map, beginning with demands for Palestinian Authority reforms.
Mr. Bush wants a new Palestinian constitution, new leadership positions and improved security forces. But selling those reforms could be complicated by tough talk from senior White House officials, who make clear they would prefer Yasser Arafat have no role in day to day decision making.
SHIBLEY TELHAMI, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND: Very often when it seem as if the intent of the U.S. is to remove a leader, that people rally behind him even if he's unpopular. I think we've seen that in the past, including in the case of Mr. Arafat.
KING: Mr. Bush also will call for an international Middle East conference this summer with the goal of narrowing differences between Israel and Arab states, a resumption of direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and an easing of Israeli economic restrictions on the Palestinians.
One controversial idea is recognizing an interim or provisional Palestinian state that would consist of West Bank and Gaza Strip land now under Palestinian control. The borders of a permanent state and competing claims on Jerusalem would be left to direct negotiations.
Vice President Cheney is said by knowledgeable sources to be skeptical of recognizing an interim Palestinian state before seeing proof of Palestinian reforms. And several top officials say the idea, while still on the table, appears to be losing appeal.
Another deadly bombing only reinforced Israel's view that this is no time for peace talks and no time to discuss Palestinian statehood, interim or otherwise.
MARK REGEV, ISRAELI EMBASSY SPOKESMAN: What possible motivation will the terrorist have to cease his murderous activities if he feels he's getting concessions? That's why we say firmly stop the terrorism and then we return to a political process, which has to go hand in hand with fundamental reforms in the Palestinian Authority.
KING: The White House condemned the bombing as the work of those who oppose peace and says it will not impact the president's deliberations.
(on camera): John King, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And if you're wondering how Israel is responding to the latest violence this time, well, it's changing its tactics.
CNN's Jerrold Kessel has this report from Jerusalem.
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JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Has the Middle East conflict moved again into a different dimension? That's the question that reverberates here this morning, as Israel continues to bury the dead from Tuesday's bus bombing here in Jerusalem and declares a tough new approach to trying to combat the Palestinian suicide bombers.
More than 20 people remain hospitalized from their injuries sustained in that attack on the bus as the funerals continue for the 19 people who were killed by the young Palestinian religious studies student from a Nablus university, who declared in his farewell message before setting out for the attack how beautiful it is to kill and to be killed.
Overnight, late Tuesday, Israeli forces moved into two Palestinian towns on the West Bank, Jenin and Qalqilya, as Ariel Sharon's broad security cabinet declared that there was a change in its policy, in Israel's policy in trying to thwart these suicide bombers.
The policy would now be, according to a statement from Mr. Sharon's office, that Israeli forces would occupy, reoccupy areas of the Palestinian Authority until the terror stops. The statement adding that if there were more terror attacks then more areas would be taken.
It isn't immediately clear if the Israeli moves into Jenin and Qalqilya were the start of that new policy or if this was still a continuation of the policy the Israeli Army has been mentioning for the last month and more of regular but short forays into Palestinian towns to try to thwart the bombers at source.
The Palestinian Authority has condemned the new declared Israeli policy, saying it is simply an invitation to more violence and designed to stop U.S.-led moves to get the situation back into negotiations. Both sides remain on tenterhooks in advance of a still anticipated U.S. mapping out of policy by President Bush.
Jerrold Kessel, CNN, Jerusalem.
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