The war to end all peace

In the 1990s Palestinians and Israelis believed they had found a way to end their century of conflict.

The flurry of hope was brief, and far from universal, but it was real.

It is as hard as ever to watch the horrific pictures coming out of Gaza .

Another deluge of horror is coming, as Israel prepares a new offensive.

Palestinians call the events before and after Israel ’s declaration of independence “the catastrophe” (“ al-Nakba ”) More than 700,000 Palestinians either fled the Israeli advance or were expelled by force.

In 1993 it took effort and bravery to embrace the new thinking necessary to try to end a war that neither side has been able to win.

Palestinian intellectuals condemned Yasser Arafat for selling out his people by agreeing to a deal that allowed Israel to expand settlements for Jews on the occupied land they wanted for a state.

The Israeli right, including its rising star, warned that territorial compromise risked the lives of every Israeli .

Hardliners on both sides wanted to wreck the Oslo process.