Have you been surprised by the strength and tenacity of Hizbullah?
Not their strength but the strangeness of this operation. Nobody understands why they started to attack, what the purpose of the attack was and why they are using so many rockets and missiles. We knew they had them but were surprised they used them.
Somebody must make sure that Hizbullah does not return to the south of Lebanon.
What does Israel have to show after three weeks of this operation?
...I think in spite of everything, we are weakening Hizbullah. It's not a confrontation with an army, so we can't have a victory in a military sense.
What do you want to achieve?
I want to achieve the perception, the conviction that you cannot bombard Israel. We shall not permit Hizbullah to come back to [the] southern border between Israel and Lebanon. The second is to stop the firing of missiles and rockets. The third is to release our two soldiers that were taken hostage. And the fourth is to get control over their arsenal of rockets and missiles.
Do you feel that the military gains you have made have been offset by the damage to Israel's image? Hasn't this war strengthened Hizbullah's image in the Arab world?
We could do without it, yes. It's building and destroying [Hizbullah] at the same time. What are they going to achieve—prestige, applause?
Just in case you may think he was, er, hugh, here's another of his Newsweek interviews from the past when Peres discussed in an interview in Newsweek magazine the realignment of Israeli politics and the prospects of a withdrawal from the West Bank
Excerpts:-
Recent polls show wide support for Sharon's party. Does this mean the Israeli public agrees to a West Bank withdrawal?
Everybody knows that. Even the most extreme people on both sides. It doesn't mean that we agree exactly on the line, but we agree on the scope. So I'm asking myself, if we know what the permanent peace will look like, why postpone it? Why wait?
Do you see the possibility of true negotiations today with the Palestinian Authority?
You cannot approach the negotiation table with a rifle in your hand. Nobody can. Actually, the Palestinian Authority says that after [the January 2006] elections, they won't permit anyone holding arms to come to the negotiation table.
Ten years ago you advocated a new Middle East. What is left of this vision?
It's already a new Middle East. Not only do we have peace with Egypt, but it's growing in strength and depth...Syria is an outsider today in the Middle East. Once, it was a leader, but what is Syria today? Nobody thinks about Syria in terms of leadership. They are irrelevant militarily.
You're 82. What's been the greatest moment of your career?
I'm waiting for it to arrive.
You must be a great optimist.
I would say that optimists and pessimists die the same way. They just live differently. I prefer to live as an optimist.
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