On Sharon's cosmetic tactic

Although he has dismissed Palestinian President Yasser Arafat as irrelevant, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has consented to talks between his Foreign Minister Shimon Peres and chief of the Palestinian Legislative Council, Ahmed Qureia. This approval might have created the false impression that Sharon, a.k.a. the Butcher, has had a change of heart. But there is more to the situation that meets the eye.

Since taking over as Israel's Prime Minister earlier this year, Sharon has stepped up a brutal Israeli crackdown, which he later termed as a war against terror on the Palestinians

Sharon calculates that allowing his minister to meet a Palestinian official will whitewash the image of the Israeli premier, who is generally perceived as a ruthless tactician and anti-peace strategist.

In addition, the collapse of the talks would play into his hands. With the U.S. squarely on his side, Sharon would heap blame on the Palestinians of perpetuating the cycle of violence. In turn, he would go ahead with his genocidal war against the Palestinian self-rule zones.

-- Egyptian Gazette, Cairo