Here is an op-ed in the Sept. 1 National Post by Shimon Fogel, CIC CEO:
What will it take to close the gap and achieve a secure peace in the Middle East? The question is especially pressing this week – with Israeli and Palestinian negotiators meeting in Washington to resume direct talks for the first time in over a year. To understand how to obtain a lasting peace today requires examining how it has been secured in the past – and how, by contrast, other efforts have dissolved into bloodshed.
Israel has enjoyed decades of peace with two former belligerent states: Egypt and Jordan. In both cases, Israel forfeited swaths of land in exchange for full recognition and the cessation of aggression. To secure an agreement with Egypt, Israel uprooted settlements and gave up the Sinai – an area nearly three times the size of Israel that contains vast oil resources.
Israel has also taken steps for peace that were unfortunately met with violence and chaos. In 1993, the historic Oslo peace process was launched. The Palestinians were to abandon all violence and build the foundations for a functioning civil society. The Israelis were to yield territory in Gaza and the West Bank, and pave the way for a future Palestinian state.
In response, Hamas unleashed a vicious campaign of suicide bombings against Israeli civilians. But the Israelis held fast to Oslo, ceding control of substantial parts of the territories to the Palestinian Authority and preparing for final status negotiations.
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