Barak nearly choked on bone at peace summit, newspaper says

JERUSALEM (Reuters) -- An Israeli newspaper said Friday that Prime Minister Ehud Barak almost choked to death during the Camp David peace summit.

The daily Maariv said a bone got caught in Barak's throat one evening in his room at U.S. President Bill Clinton's Maryland retreat. Barak was sitting with Israeli delegates.

Gadi Greenstein, a former navy man who took part in the negotiations, performed the Heimlich maneuver on the Israeli leader, who had been "choking and croaking" for several seconds, the paper said.

It said Greenstein dashed over to the former Israeli commando, grabbed him from behind, compressed his diaphragm and lifted him up to save him while most of Israel's tough-talking delegation to the summit looked on in shock.

Later, members of the delegation asked an American doctor to take a look at Barak, who declined to be examined. A senior member of the delegation told Maariv the incident had been frightening. Barak's office had no immediate comment.

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