president bush in israel toasting democracy

Bush links optimism for Mideast reform to democratic Israel By JENNIFER LOVEN Associated Press Writer JERUSALEM (AP) - President Bush said Wednesday that 60 years of Israel's existence is cause for optimism for democratic change throughout the Middle East. "What happened here is possible everywhere," Bush said, opening a trip divided between ceremonial duties and a new push for Israeli- Palestinian peace. "I suspect if you looked back 60 years ago and tried to guess where Israel would be at that time, it would be hard to be able to project such a prosperous, hopeful land," Bush said during a meeting with Israeli President Shimon Peres. "No question, people would have said, 'We'd be surrounded by hostile forces.'" Yet Bush's message of optimism was immediately offset by troubling realities in the region. Israel confirmed plans to expand settlement activity in the West Bank, a development likely to undermine peace talks with Palestinians. A weakened Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert fended off corruption allegations. And another burst of violence erupted in the Gaza Strip just ahead of Bush's arrival in Israel. Bush, trying to hold together peace talks in his waning months in office, said modern Israel gives him a strong example to preach optimism to the Middle East. "The objective of the United States must be to support our strongest ally and friend in the Middle East ... and, at the same time, talk about a hopeful future," he said. Bush has expressed confidence, though more tempered lately, that an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement would be struck before his term ends. But he and his aides are holding out little hope for a major breakthrough during this five-day trip to Israel, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said ahead of the trip that reaching a deal to end one of the world's longest-running and most difficult disputes within the next eight months "might be improbable, but it's not impossible." Peres backed Bush's hope for an accord, saying Israelis want to work with Palestinians. "We would like to see the Palestinians living together," he said. "They have suffered a great deal of their life. The separation is a tragedy for them and for the rest of us." Just hours before Bush arrived, however, an Israeli official said the Housing and Construction minister was planning to approve the construction of hundreds of homes in West Bank settlements. In the talks, the Palestinians demand that Israel stop building in areas they both want for a future state, and Israel's failure to do so—despite pressure from the Bush administration—has recently increased Palestinian disappointment and frustration. Amid Palestinians' declining hopes for an agreement, they also are marking a different sort of anniversary—the "nakba," or catastrophe, the word they use to describe Israel's establishment which resulted in the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians. Israel has imposed a closure on the West Bank and Gaza Strip during Bush's visit, preventing Palestinians from entering the country. Normally, tens of thousands of Palestinians are permitted into Israel each day for work, health care and family visits. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Bush national security adviser Stephen Hadley suggested that Bush might acknowledge the Palestinian view of the milestone when marking the Jewish state's birthday. Meanwhile, the violence continued. Two Palestinian civilians and three militants were killed Wednesday in Israeli military raids on the Gaza Strip, Palestinian medical officials said. One of the civilians was a 17-year-old riding his bike, doctors added. Israel frequently raids Gaza to try to stop militants from firing rockets and mortars at Israeli border communities. But the attacks occur almost daily, and two Israelis were killed in the past week Upon Bush's arrival at the airport at Tel Aviv, he hugged Olmert, the subject of a campaign finance investigation that could push him from office. Earlier, broadcasters' microphones had picked up Olmert's assurances to Hadley: "Holding on, holding on, don't worry." Olmert has rejected charges that he illegally accepted campaign contributions, but he also pledged to step down if he is indicted. In the Gaza Strip, Hamas called the Bush visit a "bad omen." "No greetings to you, Bush, on our holy land," said Hamas strongman Mahmoud Zahar. "Your people will punish you one day." And in Tehran, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that Israel is dying and that its 60th anniversary celebrations are an attempt to prevent its "annihilation." Peres chastised Hezbollah for aiming to destroy Lebanon and accused Hamas of working to prevent the creation of a Palestinian state. The U.S. has labeled both as terrorist groups. Bush and Peres spoke after briefly strolling through the gardens behind the Israeli president's residence. They sat with their aides under an ivy-covered sandstone trellis amid a grove of trees and flowers. Stepping somewhat on the message of the anniversary festivities, Bush joked that Israel really isn't so long in the tooth. "As a person who's 61 years old, it doesn't seem that old," he said. Bush, who had visited Israel in January, was set to speak Wednesday night at a conference in Jerusalem celebrating Israel's anniversary. The conference, convened by Peres, includes former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, writer and Holocaust survivor Eli Wiesel, and other Jewish Nobel laureates.