Land for peace

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Land for peace is a general principle proposed for resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict by which Israel would relinquish control of all or part of the territories it conquered in 1967 in return for peace with and recognition by the Arab world. The formula appeared for the first time in UN Security Council Resolution 242; it has since then become the main guideline of American and international policy regarding the conflict.

Land for Peace was first used as the basis for Israel's peace treaty with Egypt in 1979, which included an Israeli retreat from the Sinai in exchange for economic assistance to both sides from the United States and a peace treaty with Egypt. The international community supports the same principle for the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and the Golan Heights. In the Camp David Accords of 1978, the establishment of a Palestinian self-governing authority is envisioned; at this time however, Jordan was regarded as a representative of the Palestinians. Numerous statements by Israeli officials indicated that much of the Israeli establishment wanted to follow a similar course with Jordan and the West Bank. However, Jordan withdrew its claims to the West Bank and subsequently signed a peace treaty with Israel that included only minor border adjustments. The principle reappeared in the Oslo accords with the PLO. The hand-over of land in return for peaceful co-existence is a feature of most Proposals for a Palestinian state.

Pursuing Land for Peace has preceded tragedy for three Israeli leaders who championed this policy:

Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by Yigal Amir, a right-wing activist who had strenuously opposed Rabin's signing of the Oslo Accords.
Ehud Barak, with respected military and political careers, was elected Prime Minister of Israel in 1999, defeating strong-Israel proponent Benjamin Netanyahu. Bowing to US President Bill Clinton's pressure to pursue Land for Peace, Barak lost the 2001 elections to Ariel Sharon's Likud party by a landslide.
Ariel Sharon's Likud party victory appeared to be a shift away from Land for Peace. Sharon's declaration that the Temple Mount complex would remain under perpetual Israeli control was seen as a sign of strong-Israel policy. However, on November 21, 2005, Sharon resigned as head of Likud, dissolved parliament and formed a new center-right party called Kadima. Less than a month later, Sharon suffered a minor ischemic stroke. Sharon spent several days in hospital before being released. During his hospital stay, he was also diagnosed with a minor hole in his heart and was scheduled to undergo a cardiac catheterization to fill the hole in his atrial septum on January 5, 2006. On January 4, however, Sharon suffered a massive hemorrhagic stroke and was evacuated by ambulance to undergo brain surgery. Sharon underwent seven hours of surgery to stop the bleeding and drain the accumulated blood. The doctors estimated his chances for recovery as being "very low." He has been in a coma since January 4.
[edit] Arab-Israeli peace diplomacy and treaties
[edit] External links
- A collection of articles that speak about Land for "Peace". chabad.org
- A video shiur about Land for Peace
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