Israel Debates Going It Alone

Israeli Vice Prime Minister Ehud Olmert stepped up his calls for a sizable withdrawal from the West Bank on Wednesday, urging a clear "separation" between Israelis and the Palestinians.

"I am talking about an overall process for separation between us and them, so clearly such a separation will require a separation line different from what exists now," Olmert told Israel army radio.

However, Israel's foreign minister criticized talk about Israel taking steps on its own without the Palestinians.

Meanwhile, Egyptian mediators wrapped up their latest effort to persuade Palestinian militant groups to halt attacks on Israelis. No progress was reported.

In new violence, Palestinian militants detonated two bombs near an Israeli guard post near the Egyptian border in the Gaza Strip, causing significant damage but no injuries, the army said.

Palestinian sources said a 20-year-old man was killed when soldiers fired on a crowd of bystanders near the tower. The army said it had shot a Palestinian gunman, but had no details on his condition.

Israel has said it is committed to the U.S.-backed "road map" peace plan, which envisions an independent Palestinian state by 2005. In its early stages, the plan requires Israel to halt settlement activity in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, while calling on the Palestinians to dismantle militant groups.

But Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has talked of taking unilateral action if peace efforts fail. Sharon is expected to announce details of his plan on Thursday.

The United States and the Palestinians oppose one-sided actions, saying a peace deal must be reached through negotiations.

Foreign minister Silvan Shalom, however, said unilateral steps would be a "prize to terrorism" and would serve only to weaken Israel's ability to negotiate in the future, reports Israel's Haaretz newspaper. He said that unilateral measures "will not help us progress and will not raise a sense of commitment in the Palestinians."

Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia said Wednesday he would welcome any Israeli withdrawal from Palestinian territories. But he urged Sharon to honor the road map.

"It is better for us to agree on the issues to reach a permanent agreement to put an end to the conflict ... not to take unilateral steps," he said.

Since taking office in October, Qureia has been trying to arrange a meeting with Sharon, but the two sides have not been able to agree on an agenda. Palestinian officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the meeting could take place as soon as next week.

Olmert, a close ally of Sharon, has come out in favor of unilateral action if peace talks fail. In a speech to a national security conference Tuesday in the city of Herzliya, he said "tens of thousands" of West Bank settlers would have to be uprooted.

In the radio interview, he played down the U.S. criticism of unilateral action, saying Israel's preference is for negotiations.

"If these efforts don't succeed" and Israel takes unilateral action, he said, "it is possible that in the reality that will exist then, the American position will be different."

Olmert was asked to elaborate on his opinion that "tens of thousands" of settlers and a considerable number of settlements will have to be evacuated. He said it was clear that the current borders would have to change.

"I don't think we should create some fantasy, and I also don't think we should avoid the reality as it is and as we have to deal with it," he said.

Under the road map, Israel is supposed to dismantle dozens of tiny unauthorized outposts in the West Bank. These outposts are in addition to the roughly 150 established settlements — where about 220,000 Israelis live — in the West Bank and Gaza.

Israeli leaders have come under growing international and domestic pressure to end three years of fighting with the Palestinians. There are also concerns that if Israel continues to occupy the West Bank and Gaza, home to 3 million Palestinians, it will no longer be able to ensure a Jewish majority under its rule.

Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday argued against a unilateral pullback.

"For every step that you take, you have to receive a return, concessions have to come in return for something," Netanyahu, a former prime minister, told the Herzliya conference.

Meanwhile, Egyptian mediators met with representatives of several militant groups, including Islamic Jihad, in ongoing efforts to secure a cease-fire commitment.

As part of that effort, Egypt will send its foreign minister for a rare trip to Israel next week, Egyptian and Israeli officials confirmed.

Egyptian officials said they had wrapped up their meetings with the militants without making any progress and planned to return home on Thursday.

"We are under occupation and we have no other choice [than] just to fight," said Hamas leader Abdel Aziz Rantissi.

Qureia has been trying to persuade militants to commit to a truce to help revive peace talks.

"We will try our best, and if they (Israelis) want to be fair enough I think they should say, 'Yes we will implement the road map,'" Qureia said.

Sources close to the talks said that Egypt has received a commitment from Washington to press Israel to pull back to the September 2000 lines if the militants agree to halt attacks. Since violence broke out in late 2000, Israel has largely reoccupied most of the West Bank and Gaza.

Islamic Jihad spokesman Mohammed Al Hindi said the group opposed the latest proposal. "Our long bad experience with the Americans makes us believe in acts on the ground only," he said.

In other developments, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer met with the Palestinian and Israeli prime ministers in hopes of restarting talks on the road map. The European Union is also a sponsor of the plan.