HAVING given the green light to Israel for its week long assault on Lebanon, the Clinton administration was yesterday desperately trying to arrange a ceasefire in the Middle East in the wake of the horrific massacre at Qana.
US reaction, from the administration to the media, to the Israeli killing of some 100 people seeking refuge with the United Nations, has been muted. President Clinton did not condemn the shelling of the UN camp when he spoke to reporters in St Petersburg, Russia, yesterday, though he appealed for an immediate ceasefire.
He went some way to ease the international embarrassment for the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Shimon Peres, by saying it was "almost impossible" to prevent civilian deaths in Lebanon in the current crisis because Hizbullah was launching rockets at Israel from civilian areas.
Having despatched the US Secretary of State, Mr Warren Christopher, and special envoy, Mr Dennis Ross, to the Middle East for urgent talks, Mr Clinton said he was "somewhat hopeful" Israel and Hizbullah would agree to international appeals for a ceasefire.
Earlier this week, the US State Department decried as a "terrible tragedy" Israel's shelling of an ambulance, but stopped short of calling for Israeli restraint.
The New York Times yesterday offered only the mildest criticism of Israel. It referred in an editorial to the "accidental shelling" of the UN base and emphasised it was in response to an attack by "Hizbullah terrorists" firing at Israeli positions from 300 yards away. "By doing so Hizbullah put the civilians at risk," the paper said, adding: "But Israel cannot escape its share of responsibility for the casualties.
CNN reports frequently referred to the killings in terms of how they would affect Israel's image, with commentators calling it a "public relations disaster".
Yesterday was the first anniversary of the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City which killed 168 people, and the scenes of grief and destruction from Lebanon matched old footage of the Oklahoma bombing shown on television.
Having refused to call for restraint from Israel since it launched its attacks on Lebanon, the Clinton administration finds itself in a quandary: how to react strongly enough to a massacre just as horrible as Oklahoma and retain its credibility in the Middle East.
Washington does not want to react so strongly that Mr Peres's election prospects' are damaged. The US administration regards him as an essential player in the peace process; his replacement by a hard line opposition Likud leader would prejudice future negotiations.
Given his self imposed restraints, Mr Clinton has taken the only option open to him - to emphasise the role of the US as peacemaker in the Middle East peace process, and to be seen to be acting on it.
"We have direct contacts with all the parties involved," the President said. "I think they are looking for some way to stop the fighting so I am somewhat hopeful. I think the parties have got to agree to a ceasefire. It's obvious that they are neighbours and as we have seen in the terrible events of the last few days, once someone starts the spiral of violence it's hard to stop We are going to work very hard today and tomorrow and see if we can do it."
White House officials said the crisis in the Middle East was likely to come up in informal discussions Mr Clinton has with world leaders in Moscow. They predicted a collective statement urging a ceasefire.
Mr Christopher will arrive in the Middle East today to work out a set of "understandings" to end the crisis. A US official said "the events of the last several days show we can't abandon it the peace process. We have to accelerate."