Netanyahu to Assad: Let's Talk

WASHINGTON, D.C.: A year after an unprecedented wave of Hamas terrorist bombings brought a bloody end to Israels peace talks with Syria, Benjamin Netanyahu says he's ready to resume talks with Syrian President Hafez Assad. Although Netanyahu said he would not set preconditions for talks, preconditions for peace appear still on the table. According to the Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot, Netanyahu told both President Clinton and Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in meetings Thursday that "you must make it clear to Assad that he must think of other options -- the option of a total withdrawal from the Golan does not exist from our point of view." It probably won't be that easy. "Netanyahu knows he can't separate the pieces of the puzzle, reports TIMEs Bill Stewart. Syria wages a guerrilla war on Israel through Hizbollah. So, Israel cannot have peace, or safely withdraw from southern Lebanon, until it satisfies Syria with the Golan Heights. Netanyahu's hard line on the Golan may be primarily a negotiating ploy. Israeli support for the continued presence in southern Lebanon has been waning, especially after last month's deadly helicopter accident killed 73 Israeli troops there. Having already established the principle that he would trade land for peace in completing the West Bank withdrawal agreement earlier this year, Netanyahu may be ready to compromise on the Golan.