ISRAELI Palestinian peace efforts were plunged into chaos last night, after the Palestinian leadership officially informed the Israeli government it was rejecting the latest Israeli formula for West Bank land handovers.
Israel was set to begin a minor redeployment today that would have involved increasing Palestinian control of a small percentage of West Bank territory. However, Mr Abu Mazen, deputy to Palestinian Authority President, Mr Yasser Arafat, last night told the Israeli Foreign Minister, Mr David Levy, the Palestinians did not regard this pull back as sufficient to meet the obligations of the peace accords.
The Palestinians also protested over the unilateral manner in which Israel had decided on the scale of the handover, and reiterated their anger over Israeli plans to close four Palestinian offices in Jerusalem and to build 6,500 Jewish homes at Har Homa, on the south east edge of the city, adjacent to the West Bank.
At a press conference after his failed talks with Mr Abu Mazen, Mr Levy said he had sought to make Israel's position clear, but that the Palestinians had a contrary interpretation of the peace accords. Behind that kind of mild language, however, some officials on both sides were again speaking of a crisis in the peace process.
Ironically, this latest setback came as the Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, was being lambasted by his own right wing camp for being overly ready to compromise with the Palestinians.
Just nine months after their votes helped bring him to power, for example, leaders of the 50,000 strong Jewish settler community in the West Bank and Gaza Strip yesterday renounced Mr Netanyahu and vowed to doe their best to force him out of office.
The settlers are finding sympathetic supporters inside the Netanyahu coalition itself. Throughout the day yesterday, Mr Netanyahu was forced to meet with a succession of right wing Knesset members threatening to vote against their own government in protest against what they regard as the prime minister's ongoing capitulation to Palestinian and in pressure.
"The homeland is in danger," said coalition member Mr Michad Kleiner after meeting Mr Netanyahu and restating his intention of voting against his own government in next week's no confidence motion.
Ordinarily, in such political circumstances, Mr Netanyahu would be able to whip the grumblers into line by threatening a dramatic reshuffle. He could raise the idea of bringing in Labour Party leaders to key ministerial positions and establishing a "national unity government". However, as the prominent Labour Knesset member Mr Uzi Baram noted last night, Labour will not join Mr Netanyahu's Likud in a unity partnership so long as even "a shadow" of moral doubt hangs over the government because of the continuing attorney general scandal.
Unfortunately for the prime minister, the police investigation into alleged illegalities over the short lived appointment of Mr Ronnie Bar On as attorney general is set to last at least another week.
David Horovitz is managing editor of the Jerusalem Report
AFP adds: Pope John Paul yesterday criticised Israel for decisions he said could "seriously harm" the peace process, in a clear reference to Israeli authorisation for the building of new settlements in east Jerusalem.
"Serious decisions on Jerusalem have been taken by the Israeli authorities which have sparked concern in the international community," the Pope told thousands of pilgrims who had gathered in St Peter's Square for the traditional Angelus prayer.
He said such decisions could "seriously harm the peace process and the spirit of trust that is so necessary for its continuation".