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MLS 610B-81
Spring 2003
WEEK 15: Monday, May 5.
From Camp David to Oslo
Camp David (1978-9):
War in Lebanon:
Intifadah (1987-91): The (first) Intifadah, which literally
means “shaking off,” began December 8, 1987, after an Israeli military truck
crashed into several Arab cars in Gaza, killing four. The uprising
was in response to several developments in the occupied territories in the
1980s, including the Israeli policy of increasing settlements. Whereas
between 1967 and 1977 an annual average of 770 Israelis settled in the occupied
territories, under Likud Party leadership between 1977 and 1987 that average
increased to 5,690, which displaced Palestinians from their land.
Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait on August 2, 1990, setting into motion events
that would culminate in the Gulf War in early 1991. The US prevailed
upon Israel not to enter the war because doing so could destroy the coalition
aligned against Iraq that included Arab nations. Israel maintained
its restraint despite the fact that Iraqi Scud missiles were fired at it
several times. During the Gulf War, the US promised Syrian President
Assad and other Arab leaders that following the conflict it would convene
a conference to pursue peace efforts with Israel. US Secretary of State
James Baker convened a peace conference on October 30, 1991, in Madrid, Spain,
but the talks dragged on for nearly two years with little progress.
US leaders and other participants did not know that secret and far more fruitful
talks had been initiated in Oslo, Norway, by the Rabin government after its
election in June 1992.
The Oslo Accords: