Weary Israelis ready to give peace a chance

As word of Israel’s landmark acceptance of a US-backed peace plan buzzed across the airwaves, 48-year-old Philippe leaned back in his c...

As word of Israel’s landmark acceptance of a US-backed peace plan buzzed across the airwaves, 48-year-old Philippe leaned back in his chair at a Jerusalem cafe and sipped a cappuccino with perfect equanimity.

‘‘After two and a half years of war, it’s very difficult for Palestinians and Israelis to think about a new era,’’ shrugged Philippe, a French-Israeli. ‘‘It’s not a marvellous plan, but we have to try.’’

In a poll published by the local Maariv newspaper two weeks ago, 29 per cent of respondents said they opposed the road map, while 36 per cent supported it. Thirty-five per cent of were undecided. Many Israelis greeted the news with outright pessimism or a feeling of deja vu, caused by disenchantment with past peace talks that disintegrated into new cycles of violence. Israel is also still reeling from a spate of recent suicide bombings that threatened to scuttle the latest peace initiative.

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‘‘I think it’s a mistake,’’ said Ester Journo, 19, of the decision to endorse the peace timeline that would establish a Palestinian state by 2005. ‘‘You give them a little and you have to give them more. I don’t think there is a solution.’’

‘‘I think the time has come’’ for peace, said Yaniv Maman, 25, as he tied a ribbon in a Jerusalem flower shop.

The Israeli Cabinet’s endorsement of the peace plan was widely seen as a response to US coercion.

Meanwhile, in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestinians were sceptical that the latest peace plan would produce any real change. (LAT-WP)