U.S., Israel and the Palestinians: Oslo, Gaza and Beyond

<p>This episode&nbsp;focuses on one of the&nbsp;toughest issues in the world, namely efforts by the US to reconcile the Zionist national movement, or Israel, and the Palestinian national movement.&nbsp;The interviews focus on two key moments in recent decades that aimed to bring Israel and the Palestinians closer to peace: the 1993 Oslo Accords and the 2005 disengagement from the Gaza Strip. The Oslo Accords were significant because these talks marked Israel’s recognition of a Palestinian nationalist movement. Rabin sacrificed more than just political capital for these efforts: he lost his life for them, to an assassin’s bullet at a peace rally in Tel Aviv in November 1995.&nbsp;A decade later, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon&nbsp;chose to pull out 8,000&nbsp;settlers from Gaza.&nbsp;Sharon was the architect of the settlement movement and, therefore,&nbsp;had a&nbsp;unique political credibility to make this decision.&nbsp;​</p><br><p>Host David Makovsky discusses this these moments with two individuals who were both&nbsp;personally&nbsp;involved.&nbsp;Tzipi Livni has served as Israeli foreign minister, justice minister, opposition leader, and head of the Israeli negotiating team during the 2013-2014 Kerry peace talks.&nbsp;Dennis Ross is David's&nbsp;colleague at the Washington Institute and co-author of&nbsp;<em>Be Strong and of Good Courage: How Israel’s Most Important Leaders Shaped its Destiny</em>&nbsp;(which features chapters on both the Oslo Accords and Gaza disengagement).&nbsp;He has served in multiple US administrations, including as Middle East envoy and chief negotiator in the H.W. Bush and Clinton administrations.&nbsp;</p><br><p><br></p><p><u>Audio Clips Used</u></p><br><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8CFL6gHgxI&amp;t=438s" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Signing of the Israeli-Palestinian Declaration of Principles</a></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.c