The Middle East Conflict: From Bad to Worse to War

In 1998, the Middle East conflict celebrated its 50th anniversary, and now, seven years later, no final general settlement is in sight. Despite peace agreements between Israel and two Arab countries (Egypt and Jordan) in the 1990s and a partial settlement with the Palestinian authorities in 1993, violence reached its highest level in 2002-2004, and has still not abated. The withdrawal of Israeli forces and settlers from occupied Gaza is a step in the right direction, but too many uncertainties remain. Author Lars Blinkenberg was Denmark's ambassador to three of the involved countries in the late 1990s-Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon. After his retirement in 2000, he returned to the area numerous times to write this book on the conflict, beginning with its background in the 1948 war. The book focuses on the diplomatic negotiations while treating all the involved countries in an objective way, attempting to avoid any bias against the conflict partners.