The Contribution of Women to Peace and Reconciliation
The Contribution of Women to Peace and Reconciliation
The Contribution of Women to Peace and Reconciliation
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In 1989, the world changed. <strong>The</strong>re followed the First Gulf War, <strong>and</strong> the<br />
collapse <strong>of</strong> the Soviet Union. <strong>The</strong>se events had their effect on Middle<br />
East politics. In 1991, the International Madrid Conference on <strong>Peace</strong> in<br />
the Middle East <strong>to</strong>ok place. Between 1993 <strong>and</strong> 1995, the PLO <strong>and</strong> Israel<br />
signed an interim agreement in Oslo, under which the Palestinian national<br />
leadership was <strong>to</strong> be recognized by Israel. <strong>The</strong> agreement included<br />
the withdrawal <strong>of</strong> the Israeli army from Gaza <strong>and</strong> most <strong>of</strong> the cities <strong>of</strong><br />
the West Bank, but also divided the West Bank in<strong>to</strong> three categories,<br />
which permitted continued administrative <strong>and</strong> military controlled by Israel.<br />
During this period, Israel also intensified settlement activities in the<br />
occupied terri<strong>to</strong>ries. Below the level <strong>of</strong> the agreed-upon peace, the bat -<br />
tles between the settlers, backed by the Israeli government <strong>and</strong> the Israeli<br />
army, <strong>and</strong> the Palestinians continued. In February 1994, an ex tremist<br />
settler opened fire on Palestinians at the Tomb <strong>of</strong> Abraham in Hebron,<br />
<strong>and</strong> killed twenty-nine people, before being killed himself. Hamas there -<br />
upon organized suicide bombings in the centres <strong>of</strong> Israeli cities. On November<br />
5, 1995, Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was murdered by another<br />
Israeli extremist. In the spring <strong>of</strong> 1996, in the midst <strong>of</strong> the Israeli elec tion<br />
campaign, Hamas again organized suicide bombings, <strong>and</strong> thus contrib -<br />
uted <strong>to</strong> the vic<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>of</strong> Benjamin Netanyahu, an opponent <strong>of</strong> the Oslo process.<br />
Nonetheless, an agreement was signed in 1997 for the withdrawal<br />
<strong>of</strong> the Israeli army from Hebron, except for the protection <strong>of</strong> a small<br />
group <strong>of</strong> settlers in the middle <strong>of</strong> the old <strong>to</strong>wn. <strong>The</strong>se settlers were – <strong>and</strong><br />
still are – one <strong>of</strong> the most vocal <strong>and</strong> provocative groups, engaged in attacking<br />
Palestinians, actions commonly known as “price tag” attacks –<br />
terrorist acts against Palestinian civilians.<br />
In 1999, Ehud Barak <strong>of</strong> the Labour Party became Prime Minister. In his<br />
election campaign, with the support <strong>of</strong> the peace movement, he called<br />
for continuing the peace process, <strong>and</strong> at the same time for continuing<br />
the settlement policy. He returned from Camp David with no results. By<br />
now, the time appeared ripe for a new wave <strong>of</strong> violence on both sides.<br />
Ariel Sharon provoked that with his visit <strong>to</strong> the Temple Mount. Renewed<br />
attempts <strong>to</strong> restart the peace talks, such as Bill Clin<strong>to</strong>n’s Taba initiative,<br />
failed; suicide bombings continued. <strong>The</strong> Second Intifada broke out, <strong>and</strong><br />
was considerably more violent than the first, due <strong>to</strong> “targeted assassi-<br />
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