U.N. Security Council Resolution 478, 1980: Criticizing Israel Over Territories Taken in June 1967CIE+
The United States abstains on a Security Council resolution declaring Israel’s Basic Law on Jerusalem to be in violation of international law.
The Problem of Rafah: Prime Minister Menachem Begin’s Letter to Shlomo Goren, 1981CIE+
Prime Minister Menachem Begin argues for the return of Rafah to Egypt; the greater purpose is implementation of the Egyptian-Israeli Treaty, which also meant Israel”s withdrawal from settlements in Sinai near Rafah. Egypt in treaty negotiations with Israel, did not want to have the Gaza Strip again under their administration as they had between 1949 until after the June 1967 War
MOU Between U.S. and Israel on Strategic Cooperation, 1981
It calls for building a mutual security relationship and for enhancing strategic cooperation to
deter Soviet threats to the region. Establishment of a consultation framework is a key to the agreement.
President Reagan on the West Bank and the Palestinians, 1982CIE+
The United States endorses the application of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242 to the West Bank and Gaza, seeks Palestinian control over land and resources, and wants the territories to be affiliated with Jordan.
Israel-Lebanon Agreement, Ratified by Israel but not Lebanon, 1983
Israel and Lebanon agreed to a treaty in 1983 through U.S. mediation, only for Syria’s dominance and Lebanon’s dysfunction to block ratification.
Hamas Quotations Expressing Hatred for Zionism, Israel and Jews, 1988-PresentCIE+
Since its inception in 1988, Hamas has been crystal clear about its total opposition to Zionism and Israel. It opposes any kind of negotiations or agreements that recognize Israel as a reality, and its more extreme spokesmen regularly incite or celebrate the killing of Jews.
Hamas Charter, Islamic Resistance Movement of Palestine, 1988
As a militant Islamic Palestinian national organization, Hamas believes that Israel is illegitimate and should be destroyed through Jihad. Hamas opposes all recognition and negotiation with Israel and opposes PLO/PA leaders who have negotiated and collaborated with Israel from time to time. The Hamas-PA competition severely fragments the Palestinian political community.
Stockholm Declaration, 1988: American Jewish Leaders Help Arafat Clear Way to U.S. DialogueCIE+
PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat issues a declaration with five American Jewish leaders in an effort to meet U.S. conditions for dialogue and thus strengthen his position as the leader of the Palestinian national movement.
Secretary of State Baker Lays Out Israel’s Path to Madrid, Oslo in AIPAC Speech, 1989CIE+
Secretary of State James A. Baker III brings a realistic and prescient vision of Arab-Israeli peace negotiations and U.S. mediation to AIPAC early in the George H.W. Bush presidency.
How Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin Viewed the 1993 Oslo Accords — A Collection in His Own WordsCIE+
In September 2023, thirty years after the historic signing of the Oslo Accords, there is occasion to review Prime Minister Rabin’s understanding of them. I assembled this collection years ago from Daily Reports- Near East and South Asia, 1993-1995. Two short items about Rabin’s views are also found or linked here. Rabin provided a summary of his views of the Accords in a Knesset speech in October 5, 1995. Some of Rabin’s reasons for signing the Accords are also provided in Yehuda Avner’s The Prime Ministers.
Shimon Peres Defends Oslo Accords, Opposes Palestinian State, Rejects IDF Role in Gaza, September 1993CIE+
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres supports the Oslo Accords, opposes a Palestinian state and rejects Israel’s role in the Gaza Strip as the enforcer of security — all views that have continuing relevance for Gaza.
Yitzhak Rabin’s Reasons for Signing the 1993 Oslo Accords, Explained in 1995CIE+
Days before his assassination, Yitzhak Rabin explains that he accepted the Oslo Accords and shook Yasser Arafat’s hand because the PLO represented the last hope for a secular Palestinian nationalism amid the rise of Hamas.
1996 Shamgar Commission Report on the Assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak RabinCIE+
The Israeli investigation concludes that Yigal Amir is Rabin’s assassin. The Commission does not assess the impact on the assassin of the vicious language directed at Rabin for signing the Oslo Accords.
U.S.-Israel Joint Statement on Strategic Cooperation, 1996CIE+
President Clinton and Prime Minister Peres agree to deepen cooperation between their countries through regular consultation in all economic, political, military spheres.
Mitchell Report, 2001CIE+
In the midst of severe Palestinian-Israeli clashes, a committee led by former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell concludes, as had many previous investigations, that the two communities fear and want to live separately from each other. From the report flows the EU-U.N.-U.S. commitment to a two-state solution suggested in the 2003 Roadmap for Peace.
CIA Director George Tenet’s Israeli-Palestinian Ceasefire and Security Plan, June 2001CIE+
CIA Director George Tenet proposes a cease-fire to stop vicious Palestinian-Israeli violence that carries on for four more years. The plan seeks to restore Palestinian-Israeli security cooperation, end incitement, arrest militants and establish mechanisms for accountability through the U.S.
Or Commission, 2003: Context and Causes of Communal Clashes in October 2000CIE+
The findings of the Or Commission on the October 2000 clashes between Arab and Jewish Israelis provide context to the response of Arab citizens to the May 2021 Israeli-Palestinian fighting.
Prime Minister Sharon’s Address on Gaza Withdrawal at Herzliya Conference, 2004CIE+
Prime Minister Sharon unilaterally withdrew Israeli military and civilian forces from the Gaza Strip in August 2005. Sharon sought to ensure Israel’s Jewish and democratic essence by getting out of the lives of the Palestinians. Instead Hamas used the territory to kill Jews and degrade Israel morally. Two decades later what would Sharon have said about trusting your neighbor unilaterally?
U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701: Israel-Lebanon Border, 2006CIE+
This U.N. resolution ends the 33-day Israel-Hezbollah war but fails to bring the Israel-Hezbollah conflict to conclusion. Hezbollah fighters are not prevented from reoccupying the Israeli-Lebanese border areas, leading to repeated cross-border attacks and ultimately intensification after the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023.
Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran Asserts Anger at U.S., Hatred of Israel, Importance of Jihad, 2006CIE+
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh says in Tehran, “We shall never recognize the usurper Zionism government” and will “continue the jihadist movement until the liberation of Jerusalem.”
President George W. Bush Hails “Unbreakable” U.S.-Israel Alliance in Knesset Address, 2008CIE+
Delivering the third address by a U.S. president to the Knesset, George W. Bush celebrates Israel’s 60th birthday by emphasizing the enduring U.S.-Israel relationship based on shared values.
U.N. Security Council Resolution 1860 on Gaza Fighting, 2009CIE+
Following two weeks of Israeli-Hamas fighting, it calls for a cease-fire, and for a “lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by peaceful means.” The Hamas-Israeli war occurs again in 2013-2014.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu Addresses AIPAC, 2012CIE+
Netanyahu devotes the bulk of his speech to the Iranian threat, its desire to acquire a nuclear weapon and its sponsorship of terrorism internationally. He speaks proudly of the U.S.-Israeli relationship.
Hamas’ Political Thought in Light of the Arab Spring, 2012CIE+
In a major speech, Khalid Mishaal, the Chief of the Political Bureau of Hamas presents the organization’s vision for liberation of all of Palestine, stating that it is national duty through Jihad and armed resistance. “Palestine, from its river to its sea, from its north to its south, is the land of the Palestinians; their homeland, and their legitimate right. We will not, in any way, recognize the legitimacy of the occupation. We do not recognize the legitimacy of the Israeli occupation of Palestine, in any way.
