The Middle East Once Experienced a “Golden Era of Peace”

The recent ceasefire agreement in Gaza has captured the hearts of people around the world, as peace is a long-standing aspiration for the residents of the Middle East. The region once experienced a “Golden Era of Peace.” In 1993, the Oslo Accords were signed between Israel and Palestine, ending decades of zero-sum conflict and initiating a historic process of political dialogue to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian issue. The population in the Israeli-Palestinian regions began to increase, and community facilities were orderly constructed. However, due to internal divisions and conflicts within both Israel and Palestine, as well as inherent problems within the Oslo Accords themselves, the “transition period” eventually evolved into the ongoing peace deadlock we see today.

Internal Calls for Dialogue

The signing of the Oslo Accords was underpinned by certain political premises. From the 1980s onwards, a series of major political events occurred in the Middle East, placing the mainstream Palestinian faction, Fatah, in a political dilemma. After the Israeli ambassador to the UK was seriously wounded by Palestinian gunmen, Israel launched large-scale attacks using its land, sea, and air forces against the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and Syrian forces in Lebanon. Subsequently, Palestinian militants in Lebanon retreated to countries such as Jordan, Iraq, and Tunisia, rendering them incapable of launching direct attacks on Israel and cutting off direct communication with the Palestinian population in Israeli-occupied territories.

After the Gulf War broke out in 1991, PLO leader Yasser Arafat chose to support Saddam Hussein, a stance that was opposed by the Arab states of the Gulf. The Gulf Arab states not only expelled the PLO from their territories but also cut off all financial support to the organization. Meanwhile, Iraq, which was defeated in the Gulf War, was no longer able to provide financial support and political protection to the PLO. After 1991, the PLO found itself in a deep political crisis.

The first Palestinian Intifada, which erupted in 1987, also altered the internal factional landscape of Palestine. Traditionally, Palestinian resistance against Israel was primarily conducted by various armed organizations in exile, supported by different countries. However, the 1987 uprising was nearly a grassroots social movement organized by Palestinians living in Israeli-occupied territories. Against this backdrop, the faction within the PLO advocating for dialogue with Israel gradually gained the upper hand.

This almost all people as soldiers protest movement caught Israel by surprise and shocked Israeli public opinion. The development of modern media technology in the 1980s, particularly television broadcasting, rapidly spread images of Israel’s violent suppression of Palestinians worldwide, significantly tarnishing Israel’s international reputation. Consequently, voices within Israel began calling for reconciliation, seeking dialogue with the PLO to resolve the issue through peaceful means.

The Rabin-Arafat Handshake

With the mediation and coordination of the international community, Israeli-Palestinian peace talks gradually began. Secret talks in Oslo, Norway, laid the foundation for the peace process. In 1993, under U.S. auspices, then-Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat jointly signed the Oslo Accords. A historic moment occurred on the White House lawn when Rabin and Arafat shook hands in the presence of then-U.S. President Bill Clinton.

The Oslo Accords brought about a historic change in Israeli-Palestinian relations. Israel had long regarded the PLO as a “terrorist organization” and considered any dialogue with it illegal, while the PLO viewed Israel as an illegitimate entity, demanding the liberation of all Palestinian territories. However, in the Oslo Accords, Israel and the PLO mutually recognized each other’s legitimacy and sought to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian issue by establishing a temporary Palestinian government in parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

After the accords were signed, the settler population in Gaza continued to grow, and local residents rekindled their hopes of establishing a Palestinian state. The forces advocating peace within both Israel and Palestine were greatly encouraged. In Israel’s political arena, Shimon Peres, who succeeded Rabin as Prime Minister, actively participated in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Meanwhile, within Palestine, Arafat’s PLO returned to the West Bank and Gaza Strip, receiving a warm welcome from the Palestinian people.

Following the initiation of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, other countries around the world also became involved in peace mediation. Between 1993 and 1999, multiple peace agreements were signed between Israel and Palestine, including the Hebron Agreement and the Wye River Memorandum, addressing various aspects of Israeli-Palestinian relations, such as territory, economy, customs, and finance.

Underlying Issues

However, this peace process was fraught with underlying issues. The initially established “Palestinian National Authority” was only intended as a transitional government. As negotiations gradually touched on sensitive issues like territorial exchanges, the withdrawal of Israeli troops, and the return of Palestinian refugees, the talks began to stall. Additionally, the increasing number of Jewish settlers led to more frequent conflicts with Palestinians, eroding mutual trust between the two sides.

There were also opposing voices within both Israel and Palestine. Two years after the signing of the accords, Rabin was assassinated by a right-wing extremist in Israel, and Palestinian opposition groups continued to carry out large-scale attacks against Israel. The conflict escalated continuously, obstructing the implementation of the Oslo Accords, which gradually became a dead letter.