President Bush had good reason to take a step back from Israeli-Palestinian diplomacy, but Washington can't ignore the escalating violence in the region.

President Clinton learned the hard way that the Middle East peace process could not be accelerated to fit his schedule. Although begun with the best of intentions, Clinton's effort to forge a final agreement before leaving office resulted in a breakdown of talks and a new round of violence.

Now President Bush is learning that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict won't simply wait in suspended animation until he is ready to deal with it. Events in the Middle East unfold according to their own timetable, not Washington's. And events are in danger of spiraling completely out of control unless Washington and other interested governments apply pressure on both sides to pull back from the latest cycle of death and revenge.

The violence took a dramatic turn this week when new Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon ordered the bombardment of Yasser Arafat's personal security forces. The assault was all but inevitable, given the escalation of terrorist attacks against Israeli citizens, including the killing of a baby girl by a Palestinian gunman earlier this week.

Sharon holds Arafat and his Force 17 presidential guard directly responsible for the recent violence. The truth is more complicated. The Islamic fundamentalist group Hamas, with which Arafat's bloc maintains a wary coexistence, has claimed responsibility for several recent bombings. It isn't clear that Arafat could control the violence even if he wanted to -- but it is clear that he has said and done next to nothing to try. Arafat also bears blame for rejecting the generous deal brokered by President Clinton last year that would have given the Palestinians the independence and dignity they have long sought.

Sharon and his predecessor, Ehud Barak, also have inflamed the situation. Before becoming prime minister, Sharon helped to precipitate the latest violence when he and his bodyguards made a provocative visit to an Arab section of East Jerusalem. Barak responded too harshly early on by turning Israeli guns against young Arabs armed only with stones. And both Barak and Sharon have clamped down on the occupied territories in ways that cause undue harm to peaceful Palestinians just trying to go about their daily business.

Neither Arafat nor Sharon has shown himself capable of initiating the steps needed to step back from the brink of all-out war. Each man could use some tough persuasion from Washington. President Bush had good reason to stifle the overly optimistic talk of a comprehensive peace agreement and distance himself from last year's failed negotiations. However, the Bush administration inherited a responsibility in the region. It should be steering both sides toward an interim deal that curtails the violence, allows Israelis to feel more secure and gives the Palestinians a greater sense of autonomy. That's a long way from the comprehensive agreement President Clinton sought, but it might at least restore the uneasy peace that existed before things went so badly off track at Camp David.

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