“Our tolerance is not an expression of weakness, it’s not an expression of hesitation,” Katsav told a media briefing in New York. “The expectation is that Yasir Arafat will implement his announcement. [He must] show his seriousness.”
Katsav was speaking three days after a suicide bomber claimed the lives of 20 young Israelis at a crowded Tel Aviv nightclub on Friday-the worst such attack in Israel for six years. The deaths prompted Arafat to call for a ceasefire and order his security chiefs to prevent all attacks on Israeli targets from Palestinian-ruled territory.
However, while shooting incidents did drop over the weekend, the fragility of the ceasefire was underscored by a gun battle that erupted in the Gaza Strip on the same day Katsav was addressing New York journalists. Both sides blamed the other for starting the incident, which left at least 10 Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers injured.
Katsav, whose position is largely ceremonial, is one of the latest in a series of Israeli envoys to travel to the United States to argue his government’s case. Among those he has met on the trip include President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Colin Powell and New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
“We must stop the bloodshed,” Katsav said today. “We don’t want to stop the peace process. I still believe that it’s possible.”
Katsav noted that 26 Israelis had died since he left his country last Tuesday. “All of them were civilians,” he said.
While sharply criticizing Arafat as “disastrous” for his people, Katsav carefully stopped short of calling for the Palestinian leader to step down. “We cannot say to the Palestinian people who should be their leader,” he said. “What Yasir Arafat should do is use his popularity, his leadership, to stop the violence.”
Katsav was equally cautious in his response to a question about whether he was satisfied with the Bush administration’s role in the Middle East. Secretary of State Powell has decided to maintain a low profile in the region, calling instead on Arafat to act more vigorously to end the violence.
“I am very satisfied with my meeting with President Bush [last week],” said Katsav. “He is concentrated on the right points…I hope he can convince other countries to adopt the same approach.”
