PALESTINE -- PEACE NOT APARTHEID |
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS More than a quarter century ago, I joined Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin in signing a peace treaty between their two nations, following four wars since the nation of Israel became a reality. These leaders had committed themselves to justice for the Palestinians, the withdrawal of Israeli military and political forces from the occupied territories, and an opportunity for Israelis and all their neighbors to live in harmony with each other. The parliaments in Cairo and Jerusalem ratified the agreements, which were overwhelmingly approved by the citizens ofboth countries and have never been violated. Since then, many of the promises have been broken and there have been constant cycles of bloodshed and a rising tide of mistrust and hatred. This book is designed to examine the root causes of the continuing conflict and to spell out the only clear path to permanent peace and justice in the Holy Land. Most of my personal involvement in the troubled region since leaving the White House has been as a representative of The Carter Center, an organization that is dedicated to promoting peace, freedom, human rights, and the alleviation of suffering. My associates there have helped me to understand the complex interrelationships within Israel, among the Palestinians, and between them and the neighboring governments. Matthew Hodes, David Carroll, and others have been actively involved in formulating reasonable peace proposals and encouraging democracy. My personal assistants, Faye Perdue and Lauren Gay, have provided good advice in the preparation of my manuscripts, and Dr. Steve Hochman has joined my wife, Rosalynn, in perusing the text to detect and eliminate errors. At Simon & Schuster, I have had the invaluable assistance of Alice Mayhew as my astute and forceful editor; Serena Jones, her assistant; and Paul Pugliese, who prepared the maps. I also want to express my gratitude to Lynn Nesbit, my agent, who has blessed me by arranging this partnership with such an extraordinary publishing firm. The University of Arkansas Press has been very gracious in permitting me to use some of the material originally published in my Blood of Abraham, which is still in print and will now have an updated chronology and assessment of recent developments in the Middle East.
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