Stay Informed

Sign up to receive the Middle East Bulletin!

Support Middle East Progress

In-Depth Coverage

Original Commentaries

09/04/08
From Zero-Sum to Win-Win  —Mara Rudman, adviser, Middle East Progress; senior fellow, Center for American Progress. Original Commentary for Middle East Bulletin.
09/04/08
How Progress Is Possible  —
08/07/08
How to Deal with Jerusalem  —Lt. Col. (Res.) Ron Shatzberg, Project Director, Economic Cooperation Foundation. Interview with Middle East Bulletin.

Setting the Record Straight

Two-State Solution Still Best Option

“In practical terms, we can reach two conclusions: First, a final-status agreement, although its details are known, cannot be secured in the foreseeable future. Second, the time has come to think about other solutions. One of them is a return not to the 1967 borders, but rather, to the reality that prevailed in 1967, when Jordan controlled the West Bank.”
—Major General (ret.) Giora Eiland, “The Jordanian Option,” YNet, September 3, 2008 versus
  • "On both sides of the green line and, indeed, wherever people think about solutions to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict, a lot of old/new thinking is taking place. … Most of these ideas are patently unrealistic. Discussion of them often reflects despair, not pragmatic strategic thinking. … Precisely because there is no such alternative, other options more readily suggest themselves, ranging from temporary conflict management to three states or entities. Nor does failure today mean that tomorrow we cannot try again to arrive at a two-state solution, which remains the best option for all."
    —Yossi Alpher, coeditor of the bitterlemons family of internet publications & former director, Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies, Tel Aviv University, "One State Definitely Not an Option," bitterlemons.org, August 18, 2008

    • Middle East Analysis

    • How Progress Is Possible —Hiba Husseini, chair, Legal Committee to Final Status Negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis; former vice chairperson of the Palestine Securities Exchange (1998-May 2005). Interview with Middle East Bulletin.
    • Perils of an Israeli Transition —The New York Times, Editorial
    • The Arabs Will Look Differently Upon America —Ron Pundak, director general of the Peres Center for Peace and former architects and negotiators of the Oslo Agreement (bitterlemons.org)

    Timeline of the Israel-Hizbullah War

    July 13, 2007

    July 12: Hizbullah attacks an IDF border patrol: three Israeli soldiers are killed, two soldiers – Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser — are captured. Katyusha rockets are fired into northern Israel. IDF ground troops enter Lebanon, IDF Air Force begins air strikes in Lebanon.
    July 14: IDF Air Force attacks on Lebanon continue, including the main Beirut-Damascus highway and residential areas in Beirut’s southern suburb where Hizbullah headquarters were located. Rocket attacks on Northern Israel continue. Hizbullah hits an IDF missile ship using an advanced C-802 missile.
    July 15: Lebanese Prime Minister, Fouad Siniora, publicly calls for a ceasefire. Foreign Ministers of the Arab League convene for an emergency meeting
    July 16: Leaders of G-8 summit in Russia condemn Hezbollah’s actions.
    July 24: U.S Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrives in Lebanon and Israel to discuss long-term political solution.
    July 26: An international conference pledges to work for ceasefire and agrees on the need for a new UN international peacekeeping force to be deployed in Lebanon.
    July 28: President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair declare that an international force should be sent to Lebanon.
    July 29: Secretary Rice meets Prime Minister Olmert and presents plan for deployment of an international force in Southern Lebanon.
    July 30: Israeli search for Hizbullah fighters results in 28 civilian deaths in village of Qana. Israel suspends air strikes for 48 hours.
    August 2: After two days of relative quiet, Hizbullah renews large-scale rocket attacks on Israel. IDF expands ground operations in Lebanon.
    August 5: U.S and France reach agreement on ceasefire proposal.
    August 7: The Lebanese government decides to deploy Lebanon’s army in the south after IDF withdrawal. Ministers of the Arab League meet in Beirut.
    August 11: Olmert authorizes a wider ground operation. At 9pm, at the same time the operation starts in Lebanon, all sides agree on the draft for the ceasefire decision.
    August 12: UN Security Council unanimously accepts Resolution 1701 that calls for an end to fighting and the sending of 15,000 armed UN inspectors to southern Lebanon. Lebanon’s government unanimously approves the resolution.
    August 13: Israel’s government approves 1701. UN announces that the ceasefire will begin on August 14.
    August 14: Ceasefire begins.