Israeli Prime Minister Sharon Suffers Stroke

Powers Transferred to Vice Premier Ehud Olmert

Washington Post staff writer Scott Wilson , who is based at The Post's Jerusalem bureau, was online Thursday, Jan. 5, at noon ET to discuss Prime Minister Ariel Sharon 's stroke and its effect on Israel's leadership. Powers have been transferred to his deputy, Vice Premier Ehud Olmert.

Read more: Sharon Suffers a Cerebral Hemorrhage , ( Post, Jan. 5, 2006 )

The transcript follows.

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Scott Wilson: Hi everyone: Sorry I'm late, but it's been a busy day here. I'm among many trying to figure out what Ariel's Sharon's stroke means to Israeli and Palestinian politics and the peace process. So I'll get right to your questions.

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Rockville, Md.: Scott, do you feel that with this possibly paralzying stroke for Sharon, the peace process in the works right now, will be derailed? Also which political party both on the Israeli side and Palestinian side seems to gain the most if Sharon is in fact prevented from continuing his duties?

Scott Wilson: This is the big question, obviously, and one with as many answers as people you ask. One thought is that there is not much of a peace process happening right now - the U.S.-backed plan known as the road map is stalled. What many political analysts here say is that Sharon's departure from the political stage means that there will not likely be any more unilateral Israeli withdrawals from land envisioned as part of a future Palestinian state - like what we saw in Gaza last year. There's just no one of his stature who cold carry it out. So it could mean a return to face-to-face negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. That would be a gain for the Palestinians, who favor negotiations to resolve issues.

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Silver Spring, Md.: I think it is highly likely that even if Ariel Sharon survives, he will no longer play a leadership role in Israeli politics. Although Israel has strong political institutions and will adapt, the current strategy in dealing with the Palestinians was largely a product of Sharon's vision and his ability to move it forward given his political legitimacy. Now, there is flux and I don't see a single individual with the political strength who can step into the breach. How will this affect the political balance (right, center, left) and how does it alter Israel's strategy (disengagement with security?) with the Palestinians. By the way, although many Palestinians may be rejoicing, I don't think Sharon's exit from the political landscape would be a good thing for them.

Scott Wilson: Your feelings are shared by many here - both Palestinians and Israelis. If Sharon survives - his state is very critical at the moment - he almost certainly won't return to politics. And a strong figure with a lot of public support can make a lot happen in a conflict that has resisted many peace efforts over the years. That said, the Palestinians have not always been happy with Sharon's approach, to put it mildly. So it's hard to say whether Israel's left or right emerges stringer, and many Israeli politicians have been trying to assess this today.

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Washington, D.C.: How is the Israeli public dealing with the news about Sharon's illness?

Scott Wilson: There have been many public calls for Israelis to pray for Sharon's health, gatherings at the Western Wall, and other small demonstrations of support. It was quite a surprise to everyone, obviously, and there seems to be a number of people just stunned here today. Also some nervousness - the stock market here plunged 6 percent today, for example.

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Washington, D.C.: What is the latest news on Sharon's medical situation?

Scott Wilson: He's in serious condition, breathing with the help of a respirator, and heavily sedated. The bleeding in his brain has apparently been stopped, though. Doctors say the next 48 hours are critical.

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Oxford, Miss.: How well-known and well-liked is Ehud Olmert among the Israeli population? Is it likely that he will be able to carry the upcoming elections as Sharon seemed poised to do?

Scott Wilson: There appeared to be a move by some Kadima members (the new party Sharon created in November) to rally around Olmert as the new party leader today. He's been around a long time, having served in the Knesset since 1973, in a number of cabinets and two terms as Jerusalem mayor. He's blunt. But a lot of Israelis don't like him. He's shifted positions a lot, like many Israeli politicians, but he's not given the benefit of the doubt people like Sharon, with long resumes in the military and in other high positions, have. Analysts here today said he'd have a hard time leading a party into national elections.

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Kansas City, Mo.: Prime Minister Sharon suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. This is not an uncommon complication of the anti coagulants he was given to prevent another blood clot from developing which could once again pass through the hole in his heart and go to the brain to cause another stroke. All physicians are aware of this complication. Why was Sharon located so far from a major hospital and why was his clotting studies not followed closely enough to prevent the stroke? I am suspicious more may be involved here than we are aware. Was he given too high a dose of anticoagulant and then allowed purposefully to be located far from a medical center where his coagulation studies were not monitored for nefarious reasons? Inquisitive journalists should take note.

Scott Wilson: All good questions and all being raised feverishly today by the press here. Many questions have been raised about why he was at his ranch after suffering the mild stroke last month and why, last night, he was not taken to a closer hospital. Doctors have yet to address them, and are only issuing updates on Sharon's health at the moment.

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Anonymous: Are any of the Likud folks who left to join Kadima thinking

of returning to the Likud?

Scott Wilson: None of them have said so publicly, but some of them probably have some private regrets. Polls show that Kadima without Sharon does not do nearly as well in elections and the party is such a hodge-podge of former rivals, gathered together only by Sharon. We'll see in the coming days...

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Dallas, Tex.: I remember the Israelis praying last year for Sharon's death. Why has this not been mentioned in the news?

Scott Wilson: It has here, but the truth is it was only a dozen or so Israelis, quite extreme. There's just a lot else to cover in these stories at the moment and that isn't really representative of the general Israeli feeling.

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Detroit, Mich.: I sense from my reading of the news that though most Israelis desire a peace settlement with the Palestinians, their mood and the type of settlement they would accept is different from that before the latest intifada and intransigence of the late Arafat. I have also read that Sharon wanted to have some agreement reached while he is Prime Minister. Thus it seems that Sharon was a man of the times for Israel in the way that Rabin was a decade ago. Is there anyone else on the Israeli political scene who will have the clout and backing of the Israeli public to reach a peace agreement with the Palestinians?

Scott Wilson: The comparison to Rabin has come up quite a bit today in the context of visions toward resolving the conflict cut short by an assassination in Rabin's case and a stroke in Sharon's. The two had such different approaches through - Rabin favored negotiation, embodied by the Oslo accords, and Sharon has taken unilateral steps. But many Israelis and Palestinians worry that there are no potential successors to Sharon with the ability to sell a peace agreement, acceptable to both sides, to the Israeli public at the moment

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Alexandria, Va.: How are the Palestinians reacting to all this?

Scott Wilson: The official line is to wish Sharon a speedy recovery. The radicals are celebrating, and other political leaders are trying to determine what it means for the potential to revive a peace process. Really a very mixed reaction.

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Washington, D.C.: Does the Labor party nominee for the PM position have a better chance of winning in the elections if Sharon is out of the picture?

Scott Wilson: Probably, but it may still not be great. Likud's prospects improve also, and the anti-religious Shinui party, which was virtually wiped out by Kadima, is rising again.

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Evanston, Ill.: After the tussle following Sharon's (now inevitable) passing, what do you predict will be the "new consensus" for moving forward on the Palestinians and other fronts?

Scott Wilson: It's hard to know, but it seems unlikely there will be a consensus on how to move forward. It depends a little on how Kadima does in the elections, and if the leading party, whether it turns to Labor or Likud to form a government. One could mean a return to the roadmap, the other could mean a fairly long time before the peace process gets going again as the hawkish Israeli parties figure out their strategy.

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Fairfax, Va.: Hi. How do you think Sharon's grave condition affects the Northern border? Will Hezbollah take advantage of the crisis to ratchet up the violence and lessen some of the attention directed at the Syrians by the U.N.?

Scott Wilson: Not sure. Hezbollah, a group I spent some time with last year while covering Lebanon, operates by its own internal calculus. But I have been puzzled by this idea that Hezbollah attacks distract the world's attention from Syria, the longtime gatekeeper of Hezbollah's arms and money. It seems to me each attack does exactly the opposite - focusing attention on Hezbollah's ambiguous role in Lebanese politics and the motives of its Syrian patrons. So I couldn't say what they'll do...

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Omaha, Neb.: If Sharon is not able to return this may be the best chance for the Palestinian dispute to finally have a chance to be resolved. Sharon has done nothing to advance the process except to use brute military force to impose His will (with backup from the U.S.) on a relatively defenseless population and has created more hatred. Surely there is a more moderate leader in Israel who will negotiate a fair settlement rather than impose an unjust theft of Palestinian land which will insure that the killing will go on forever. Sharon has a long history as a brutal militarist in his relations with the Palestinians and the record proves it does not solve the problem. Is there any hope that a moderate Israeli leader will emerge?

Scott Wilson: Moderate Israelis are hard to find, especially ones with the clout and history of Sharon to push things through. Peretz has talked about reaching a final agreement with the Palestinians within a year of taking office, but he's short on specifics. The question of Jerusalem and the refugees will be very hard to resolve, and any compromise will be hard to sell for any of the current group of Palestinian and Israeli leaders.

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Houston, Tex.: There are a number of Internet leaks today that Israel and the U.S. are preparing a military strike against Iran. How would this play in Israeli politics?

Scott Wilson: There was a lot of talk about Iran a couple weeks ago here. But the focus now is on Sharon, so I really don't know how an attack on Iran would be perceived here.

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Missoula, Mont.: I understand that Sharon's personal physician had Sharon transported over an hour away to a hospital in Jerusalem, rather than go to the nearest hospital. Also, I heard that Sharon's massive stroke occurred on the way to the hospital. So, my question is whether there has been any discussion as to whether Sharon's stroke could have been avoided had he gone to a local hospital?

Scott Wilson: Maybe not avoided, but attended to sooner. A lot of people are wondering why he was brought all the way to Jerusalem, and by car rather than helicopter. Those question will be answered in the coming days, most likely.

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Scott Wilson: Thanks a lot everyone for participating. I'm way behind in my work and have to get back to it. Hope to do this again soon.

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washingtonpost.com: Thanks for joining us today. Please note that World Opinion Roundup blogger Jefferson Morley will discuss the reaction in Israel and the Arab nation's in a Live Online discussion tomorrow at 11 a.m. ET.

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Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.