Apparently, Barak’s internal political turmoil has peaked. According to the latest Israeli public opinion polls, hawkish Likud leader, Ariel Sharon, seems all set for a sweeping victory in next month’s Israeli elections for premiership.

Sharon’s election campaign has officially kicked off, under the slogan “…I [Sharon] am the only person able to bring peace to the region, without making further [territorial] concessions to the Palestinians.”

Both the Sharon and Barak campaigns seem to be hoisting the banner of peace. While Barak hopes that his war mongering will strengthen his image in the eyes of his people, Sharon attempts to guise his hawkish reputation with slogans of peace, albeit with strategic considerations and priority to Israel’s “security.” Both are approaching peace from opposite perspectives, bypassing each other, and hinging on the promise of peace.

Somewhat, the fate of the Palestinian people is now in the hands of “the Israeli voter.” Worse, it could end up in the blood-tainted hands of Ariel Sharon.

Sharon’s military past is over-decorated with massacres and crimes against humanity, most notably in his masterminding of the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacres in Lebanon (which claimed almost 3000 Palestinian lives), and most recently in his provocative incursion into Al-Haram Al-Sharif (Holy Sanctuary) in Jerusalem on September 28th, 2000; which ignited the ongoing massacre that has, so far, claimed more than 380 Palestinian lives.

There is no doubt that Ariel Sharon is a war criminal, yet the pressing question is “will the Israeli people give him the winning vote and, eventually, make him rule?”