Area Labor backers toast win at Palestinian-owned cafe

San Francisco's Cafe Abir wasn't exactly Ehud Barak's party headquarters. But on Monday night a small group of Labor supporters toasting their victory looked as if they had found peace.

"Down with Bibi," Ariel Toran, a 12-year-old Jerusalem native, said as the group raised their cappuccinos and beers in celebration. "Barak will make the peace advance."

The warm, homey cafe, which is owned by two Palestinian brothers, seemed a fitting place for the gathering of some 10 Israelis and American Jews called together via e-mail.

Musa Dajani, co-owner of the cafe, happily welcomed the crowd.

"I had a gut feeling Barak was going to win," said Dajani, who was raised in Jerusalem.

Sharing smiles with the Jews in his cafe, Dajani poured himself a tall glass of milk as a victory drink. "Now I can feel like the process of the negotiations and peace is going to continue," he said.

Although Barak has yet to say how he will proceed with the negotiations, Dajani said people believe Barak will make the peace last.

"I see Barak as a man of integrity; he's a lot tougher than Bibi. Barak's a general and knows the Middle East very well. With Barak you know that whatever is agreed on will happen."

Dajani isn't worried that Barak will be too rigid or wrest away Palestinian's dreams for a homeland. "Palestinians have some tough negotiators too. I let the politicians take care of that."

Daniel Goldstein, a 31-year-old San Francisco resident who was born in Haifa, doused his coffee with sugar and said he was thankful for Barak. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was part of the reason Goldstein left Israel three years ago, he said.

"I was just sick of all that unrespect. I'm happy about Barak. He's left-wing and the baby of Rabin and a smart guy. I just hope things are going to change for peace."

Smoking a cigarette outside, Galit Sher said she was nervous about not being in Israel to vote -- in case the race was as close as last election's 1 percent margin.

"This is really big time exciting," said Sher, a young woman from Jerusalem who has been studying art in San Francisco for the past nine months.

"We are really going to have peace. I would be dancing and swimming in the streets if I were in Israel now."