'We Feel It Every Day'.(former directors of Israel's Shin Bet call for peace negotiations)(Interview)

Earlier this month the Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot published a joint interview with four former directors of the Shin Bet, Israel's domestic intelligence service, that was notable for its sharp criticisms of the policies of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Warning that Israel's military tactics in the territories were only breeding further hatred and terror, the ex-chiefs called for an end to the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza and urged Israel to begin to negotiate unilaterally for a peace deal even before the Palestinians crack down on militant groups. Among the participants was Maj. Gen. Ami Ayalon, who headed the agency from 1996 until 2000 and is coauthor, with Sari Nusseibeh, of a peace plan that has been signed by tens of thousands of Israelis and Palestinians. Ayalon spoke with NEWSWEEK's Jerusalem Bureau Chief Joshua Hammer last week. Excerpts:

Why did you four decide to come forward now?

Each of us had been speaking out to his own small audience. But we concluded that each by himself is not loud enough, that the only way to get the attention of the press, the Israeli people and the international audience would be to sit together [and put out the message]. Soon Israel won't be a democracy or a state for the Jewish people. We have to change the direction [of our policies] before it's too late.

Are you in favor of abandoning such tactics as targeted killings, closure and the security fence?

We are not naive. We know that it is not only our right, it is our duty to fight terror using every effective tool. But let's look at the last three years. We lost 900 people. We killed thousands of Palestinians, and created humiliation and waves of future terror. We tried everything and we failed.

In the nine months before the intifada only one Israeli was killed as a result of terror. It did not happen because the Shin Bet was better. I was director of Shin Bet during most of that time, and I can tell you that Shin Bet today on an operational level is much better. Why did it happen? The main reason was the hope in the Palestinian Street.

Didn't the failed peace initiative known as the Roadmap offer that hope?