The Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations resumed in Washington last week. Despite undying skepticism from many quarters, the Obama-sponsored Netanyahu-Abbas initiative deserves support, even while cold-eyed realism spies many obstacles to peace. Israeli suspicions tied especially to Hamas rejectionism, and Palestinian grievances attached to the occupation and settlements must be overcome. Yet, as this series of columns has argued, the conflict has roots in a past that burdens both sides, with matters of history and identity still at issue. Will the past yield to the future? Only if it is confronted.
Read Full Article »
