Palestinian Territories

To break the Israeli-Palestinian impasse, the U.S. should present a two-state "vision" for each side to vote on, says expert Sari Nusseibeh. Failing that, Palestinians should press to be absorbed into Israel and given civil rights, even without the right to vote.

The end of Israel’s ban on settlement building creates political problems for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and a dilemma the Obama administration in part brought on itself, says Mideast expert Michele Dunne.

If Israelis and Palestinians can’t reach an accommodation on settlement construction, talks will end and credibility on all sides--including that of the Obama administration--will suffer, says CFR’s Robert Danin.

Severe political constraints on Israeli and Palestinian leaders cloud the prospects for progress in direct talks due to start later this week, says CFR’s Steven A. Cook.

Palestinians are pleased at the uproar against Israel after its raid on a Turkish-led aid flotilla, but what they--and Israelis--want is more active U.S. engagement in the peace process and an agreement that looks like the one proposed in 2000-2001, says Palestinian pollster Khalil Shikaki.

An Israeli announcement of more housing construction in East Jerusalem became the focus of Vice President Biden’s Middle East trip, but CFR’s Jacob Walles thinks the "proximity talks" starting next week are a practical, low-risk way to restart negotiations.

As the United States plans to spur Mideast peace efforts, CFR expert Elliott Abrams says progress in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will come through development and building a legal system in the West Bank, not negotiations when the conditions aren’t ripe.

At a time of renewed scrutiny of U.S. policy toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, veteran Middle East expert Robert Malley, who served as special assistant for Arab-Israeli affairs for President Bill Clinton, calls for rethinking Israeli-Palestinian talks to address concerns of Palestinian refugees and Israel’s right wing.

Expert Rashid Khalidi says it is crucial for Palestinian rivals Hamas and Fatah to reconcile to effectively negotiate a two-state solution with Israel or face a troubling status quo.  

A profile of Abu Nidal, a terrorist organization opposed to the state of Israel.

Daniel C. Kurtzer, a former top U.S. diplomat in the Mideast and a recent adviser to Barack Obama, says divisions in the Israeli electorate will paralyze the political process and could lead to an extended "hiatus" in peace-making.

  Aaron David Miller, a former top U.S. Mideast negotiator, says that naming George J. Mitchell as the new special envoy for Arab-Israeli issue shows the Obama administration is substituting "process for substance."