Israel's press was skeptical about the prospects for a real peace Wednesday in the wake of the Sharm Declaration, particularly of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's intentions.
The top selling Yedioth Aharonot ran an opinion poll, which found that 55 percent of Israelis support the Sharm Declaration, but many more, 77 percent, believe Arafat will not call off the violence.
The paper said he had no reason to stop, having failed to achieve his immediate goal of an international commission of inquiry.
And, the Hebrew-language paper said, he had another key reason -- avoiding a leadership battle with militants in his Fateh organization.
The Jerusalem Post, in a front-page analysis, also believed Arafat could be the chief loser of Sharm el-Sheikh after so many Palestinian deaths in the three-week wave of violence.
"Under such circumstances, it will be very hard to claim victory, and these events may mark the beginning of a major decline in Arafat's standing, and a Palestinian power struggle."
Yedioth Aharonot quoted a senior security official concerned that the deal will be difficult to implement.
"The paper of understanding does not even include a timetable and it does not even mention specific mechanisms for bringing about the implementation of the understanding. It only includes goals and intentions," the official said.
Nonetheless, the Jerusalem Post lauded US President Bill Clinton for wringing the "best possible outcome" from the summit under the circumstances.
However, it warned that the ceasefire "will, at best, be very fragile, and the potential for terrorism and clashes that could reverse these tentative achievements remain high."
The Hebrew-language Ma'ariv likened Barak and Arafat to a bickering couple in the throes of divorce, who despite the screaming and yelling have been persuaded to try again.
But "they left the conference hall at Sharm el-Sheikh full of skepticism, convinced nothing would change. Now they are waiting for time to pass, to be proven right, and for the divorce to be approved."
"These will be a fateful 48 hours -- no exaggeration -- only at the end of which will we know if the horses have irretrievably fled the stable, or if they can still be located and brought home, for an attempt to begin anew."
Ha'aretz in an editorial pointed out that even if all the declaration's points are adhered to, it will not suffice in the long run.
"The negotiation vacuum which facilitated the eruption of violence must be filled by decisive diplomatic activity.
"Concrete diplomatic steps, and an agreed-upon timetable for the resumption of negotiations from the point at which they stalled at Camp David (in July), are now crucial components needed for the process of recovery from the bloody clashes.” – JERUSALEM (AFP)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
