Plan for Middle East peace

The BBC's Tim Sebastian met Natan Sharansky

The deputy prime minister of Israel, Natan Sharansky, has defended the attack in Gaza last month which killed the leader of militant Palestinian group Hamas.

Mr Sharansky denied that Israel had deliberately targeted civilians and insisted the attack was necessary to combat terrorism.

Israel is of course very sorry about losing any innocent life

Natan Sharansky

In an interview for BBC HARDtalk he said: "We were not attacking children or innocent civilians. We were attacking there the commanding chief of the army of terrorists, the person who killed in the last months hundreds of our citizens."

Mr Sharansky said that Israel regretted the death of any innocent person, and claimed that terrorists deliberately based themselves in densely populated areas.

Click here to watch the full interview

He said: "Israel is of course very sorry about losing any innocent life."

"For terrorists civilians are a target and a human shield. For them they are using civilians to kill them - or to use them as shield."

Retaliation

The leader of Hamas, was killed when an Israeli jet dropped a one-tonne bomb on the apartment block where he was staying.

For terrorists civilians are a target and a human shield

Natan Sharansky

The bombing, which also killed 14 Palestinian civilians, including nine children, was condemned by Arab and Western leaders.

On Wednesday, in retaliation for the attack on their leader, Hamas bombed Jerusalem's Hebrew University.

Five American nationals and two Israelis were killed in the attack which also left more than 80 people injured.

Mr Sharansky said that peace could not be achieved while terrorism continued.

He said: "I believe that there are two things that will bring it [peace], first our struggle against terrorism and second encouraging democracy amongst Palestinians."

Democracy

In May this year, Mr Sharansky published his proposal for a peace plan in the Jerusalem Post.

In the article, he called for an international co-ordinating body, headed by the United States, to administer areas under Palestinian control for a three year transition period.

After that, free elections would be held, and Israel would then negotiate the terms of a permanent peace with the elected representatives of the Palestinian people.

He said: "That is a plan that gives the Palestinians a real opportunity three years from now to have freedom and a democratic state."

The interview can be watched in full on Thursday 1 August on BBC World and BBC News 24 at the following times:

BBC News 24 (times shown in BST) 0430, repeated 2230

BBC World (times shown in GMT) 0330, repeated 0830, 1130, 1530, 1830, 2330