JERUSALEM — Before his assassination Wednesday morning, Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze’evi was doing his best to break up a government he felt had gotten too soft in its battle with the Palestinians.
His death may expedite his efforts.
The six colleagues who on Monday quit the Sharon coalition, along with Ze’evi, have now rescinded their departure, which was to go in effect the day he was killed. But they reserved the right to resign again after shiva, the seven-day mourning period.
Fellow Cabinet members and friends of Ze’evi were explicitly demanding that the Israeli army target Palestinian political leaders in response to Ze’evi’s killing, while the other wing of the government balked at that notion.
If the military response is relatively moderate, and if the Americans press on with their peacemaking efforts, then presumably Ze’evi’s seven-man faction — which consists of his National Unity Party and Avigdor Lieberman’s Israel, Our Home immigrant party — will quit the government after all. That would dangerously weaken Sharon’s prospects of political survival. The prime minister still would have a comfortable margin of 16 seats in the 120-person Knesset, but looks can deceive. If Shas — the Sephardic Orthodox party that has 17 seats and a largely hawkish electorate — were to defect, Sharon would lose his majority. And Shas will be under constant pressure to do so, because it s competing for some voters with the National Religious Party, which is not in the coalition.
Similarly, Yisrael Ba’aliyah, a smaller coalition party that also serves the Russian immigrant community, will be vying for voters with Israel, Our Home, which by that time would be in the opposition.
However, if Sharon veers rightward to keep those parties, he risks losing Labor, which itself is subject to constant sniping from the dovish Meretz Party and is divided internally over its junior role in Sharon’s government.
And in the wings, former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is waiting to challenge Sharon for leadership of the national camp.
Together, those challenges mean that the decision of Ze’evi’s faction — and Sharon’s choice of steps now — could have serious repercussions for both Israel and the Palestinians.
After the assassination Wednesday, Sharon told the Knesset in a special mourning session that Yasser Arafat “and Arafat alone” was responsible for Ze’evi’s death.
The Palestinian Authority leader had done “nothing serious” to curb terrorism, Sharon said, despite his pretense to the world that he had taken action.
By doing nothing, he had in effect given the go-ahead for attacks such as the one that killed Ze’evi, Sharon implied.
Though Arafat condemned the murder, Sharon on Wednesday banned the Palestinian leader from using Gaza International Airport, but is not stopping him from leaving the area on car or foot.
The premier did not explicitly threaten any other actions against Arafat — as Ze’evi had urged repeatedly in recent months. But there was an ominous undertone in Sharon’s words.
Arafat telephoned Foreign Minister Shimon Peres late that day to say he was cracking down on the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which claimed responsibility for Ze’evi’s slaying in revenge for Israel’s killing of the Mustafa Zibri, the group’s secretary-general, on Aug. 27.
The PFLP subsequently announced it may target other Israeli leaders as well.
The organization’s spokesman in Bethlehem, Ali Jeradat — the first to take public credit for the killing of Ze’evi — has been arrested, Arafat said, along with two others.
“Arrest them all,” Peres replied somberly, “or else one pistol shot will have set fire to this entire region.”
By mid-evening, Israel Television was reporting that Jeradat was free again.
By phone, from Washington to China, where Secretary of State Colin Powell was traveling, world leaders urged Sharon for restraint.
Although Ze’evi’s killing clearly has heightened tensions and dangers in the region, some observers were optimistic that, paradoxically, it could enhance prospects for an end to the violence and a return to peace talks.
If Arafat, under American prodding and fearful of massive Israeli retaliation, finally takes convincing action against terrorist elements — and if Sharon again, as he did at the beginning of the week, chooses moderation — it could add to the incremental momentum toward a stable cease-fire and new talks.
Israel said Wednesday it would cut off further diplomatic contacts with the Palestinians until there was a firm cease-fire.
But the Americans are certain not to be deterred by that initial reaction. And, despite his fury and his determination to strike back, close aides say Sharon will be mindful of Washington’s call for restraint when deciding on reprisal actions.
Meanwhile, as with Yitzhak Rabin’s killing six years ago, the assassination has raised questions about the efficacy of the Shin Bet’s bodyguard department.
Avi Dichter, director of the Shin Bet, issued a statement Wednesday accepting full responsibility for the failure to protect Ze’evi. In fact, not all Israeli ministers are guarded at all times, and the tourism minister had not had guards with him in the hotel, where he often stayed when in Jerusalem.
Ze’evi, moreover, was a particularly obstinate client for the Shin Bet. He often bristled at protection even when it was available, arguing that he deserved no greater security than any ordinary citizen.
Still, the Shin Bet has set up an internal inquiry board, and its work could be followed by an examination by an external panel if the results are unsatisfactory.