From Beirut to Jerusalem

Content Warning: This section cites accounts of war violence, as well as criticisms of Arab culture that some readers may find offensive. 

Published in 1989, From Beirut to Jerusalem ends on a note of both caution and optimism regarding the prospect of peace between Israelis and Palestinians. By this time, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat had recognized Israel, and the Arab states were ready to foreground the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization) as the chief negotiator, and consequently, the occupied territories became the basis of a Palestinian state.

Following the book’s publication, and after years of negotiations, the government of Yitzhak Rabin signed the Oslo Accords in 1993, which reaffirmed PLO recognition of Israel, and in turn, Israel recognized the PLO as the sole legitimate voice of the Palestinian people, authorizing creation of a Palestinian Authority (PA) under PLO control to undertake various governance tasks in the West Bank, gradually expanding its remit. From the beginning, the peace process was fraught with difficulties. On the Israeli side, a right-wing extremist named Yigal Amir shot and killed Rabin in 1995, who had been pilloried by right-wing politicians (including a young Benjamin Netanyahu) for giving away too much without proper security guarantees.