Conference Summaries
/ The Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process
In light of the prolonged fighting between Israel and Hamas, forty experts, diplomats and journalists, from Israel and abroad, convened in Jerusalem on July 24, 2014 for a policy planning workshop initiated by Mitvim – The Israeli Institute for Regional Foreign Policies and the International Crisis Group. They discussed how to best advance regional stability and Israeli-Palestinian peace following a Gaza ceasefire.
The workshop addressed the changing dynamics in the Middle East, regional and international mechanisms for mediation and ceasefire implementation, the need to move from conflict management to conflict resolution, the difficulties of demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, the economic rebuilding of Gaza, the future of the Palestinian unity government and the Arab Peace Initiative.
The workshop aimed to understand the issues that led to the recent flare-up in Gaza and the favorable circumstances that could arise following a truce. This paper summarizes the main points raised in the workshop. It focuses on the analysis of key players and the assessment of future options.
