Touching Peace Book

Yossi Beilin achieved fame as the initiator and leading figure in bringing about the interim agreement between Israel and the PLO in 1993. He brings to bear his unique distinction as an intellectual and an effective politician in telling the inside story of this example of informal or second track diplomacy. It is an account of ideas and political process that in its own way is dramatic despite the low-key description of personalities. Perhaps even more interesting is the account of the subsequent informal diplomacy to secure a final peace settlement. In particular the book is notable for laying out in imaginative yet achievable ways how the key thorny issues including boundaries, refugees, Jerusalem, etc., can be settled. Indeed Beilin convincingly argues that despite recent missed opportunities the ideas that he and his colleagues (including Palestinian academics) have developed will before too long form the core of a final agreement. To his credit, Beilin appreciates that the coming of peace will present many challenges to Israel and he has much that to say about the need for radical re-thinking and change. This is that rare phenomenon that offers both a realistic and an optimistic view of the prospects for the Middle East. --Michael YahudaRead More