what a shame--- you'll publish anything that our enemis ,and ray of darkness write but not mine? this is racism ,dicrimination ,and a vehemt blunder of freedom of speech.... boy , i 'm begining to sound like tibi and bshara...:-) sherman's article is great ,and on them oney. it exposes hannniah's true colors and opininos; that he is not a moderate ,or even funy.

I don't have much time as I'm busy working tight now but I will say that various white house officials just admitted recently Barak offer never came to exist . Please be updated . Ghassan

Ahmed. Stop the crap. Build something good and decent. No one has ever stopped you but yourselves and your bloodlust and your selfishness.

It is not us behind the wall, Ahmed. It is you. Goodness, decency, hard work, a willingness to compromise, education for peace and an abandonment of terror as a negotiating tool - these are the elements that will enable you to build a nation. Don't point fingers at us when the fault lies with you.

We're a hell of a lot more than you are without the EU and UNWRA.

The difference, Ray, as pertains to whatever level of corruption may exist amongs our politicians, is that there is no threat of mass starvation or mass unemployment in Israel. Aid from the US is applied to those areas for which it was intended, as opposed to ending up in the coffers of the tiny Palestinian elite or on Suha Arafat's back. Ray, Ray, Ray.

Ahmed, self-defense and a fight survival do not constitute racism. Whatever negative attitudes you see amongs Israelis toward Arabs took 100 years to take root. You have always taken the low road and, finally, our attitudes emerged. Quite honestly, I'm surprised it took so long.

Please go back to work.

I am glad to hear that you speak out against violence, but unfortunately there are not enough modreate voices like youself. You need to stop the Imams from spewing hate messeges over loud speakers, you need to disarm fanatic militants who oppose any form of peace, you need to tech your children tolerance and understanding instead of hate and violence. Until these things happen, the Palestinians will never have a state and a good way of life. Why is it so hard for your people to oust the violent regimes that lead them to failure?

What you fail to realize, or mention, is that there is a difference between the killing of civilians by targeting them, and killing them accidently. How much time have you spent in the military? How many wars have you fought? There are military people (like me) reading this. Don't talk about just peices of the Geneva Convention. You aren't telling the whole story. I don't recall any Arab armies giving a crap about the Geneva Convention. If you can't see that it is NOT the policy of the IDF to purposely kill civilians (Almost everyone else sees this) you are not nearly as intelligent as you imagine yourself to be.

I agree with DR Florida #69 that Muslims should teach tolerance and acceptance of others. This takes lot of education but in the mean time ,resolving conflicts and settling disputes around the world including the Israeli/Palestinian conflict would help reduce the tension. As for Yonatan, USA, I regret he has not read my message clearly. I did not say Army people target civilians deliberatey. I said it can result in collateral damage (death of bystanders). I may not be intelligent enough to come up to Yonatan's standard. I can't help that. But I say again Killing Civilians for whatever reasons is wrong and must be condemned.

what a relief,to once read something truthful ! THANK YOU ! i will recommend this to everyone i know.

As much as refreashing your attitude is - you are also captured in the "false symmetry". Like froegetting the little difference - IDF is not TARGETING civilians, palestinians do.

the one who dare to be moderate also dare to face the truth,i belive. moderation without the truth can't be lasting.

That you're working is a cop out. You don't have proof. You operate on hearsay. Please be updated. 1. It happens that the only White House official that matters, President Clinton himself, said it did exist. 2. I'm aware of only one White House official who said it did not. 3. The Saudis publicly said that it did exist. 4. The Egyptians were so concerned that it existed, that they said that if the Pals accept the deal there would be no cultural normalization with Israel, even though the absence of a deal with the Pals was the reason, they said, there was no cultural normalization. 5. If it didn't exist, all Arafat had to do was to make it an offer instead of a counteroffer. The fact is even if your version of the facts was true, and it's not, you still wouldn't have accepted the deal.

when you have tanks and helicopters while Palestinians only have guns, primitive bombs and their bodies. The terrorist method uses a simple lesson from the story of David and Goliath: aim not for the armour, aim for a soft spot! It may be "cowardly" behavior, but firing a tank shell into a man armed with a rifle doesn't seem "brave" either. Wallowing in self-righteousness won't solve this conflict. But obviously it's easier than tackling the roots of the problem.

The idea of Palestinian transfer won't work because most Palestinians are attached to their land just like most Jews are. And they are infected with nationalism too. Also, countries would be unwilling to accept millions of Palestinian immigrants, especially when they see there's room for them in West Bank and Gaza; why should they accept the burden of Palestinian immigrants while Israel takes this room?

this article is true IF god create this land to day with the settelments over evry mountain and the idf is so strong and the palastinian starte the terror ,,, iam not a child but befor 50 years i was i have a brother one year smaller than me he had a piece of cake and he told me that the mother said to him to give me halfe of it ,,,i told him you divide and i will choose or i will divide and you will choose the cake was in his hand he cut the fourth gave it to me and put the rest in his mouth ,,i was so ungry beat him with a pen some blood was on his face the father heared the crying of him saw the blood on his face no blood on mine and without asking i had a good beating becouse of the asymetry the father had seen ////yes this isthe asymetry between the israil and the palastine RAY IS A MODERATE IN THIS CONFLECT AND HE LOOKS TO THE CONFLICT AS ONE MASS ASKE TO DIALOUGE ,,and israil aske for the unilateral to divide and chooce

You good article missed one very important fact: It is the Israelis who occupy Palestinian cities not the other way around. There is no Palestinian army in Tel Aviv, Netanya or Hertzylia. No check points that prevents Israeli students from going to their schools. The PNA does not hold back your money that is badly needed for investing in your infrasrtucture. Its not the Palestinians who allow your produce to rott in the sun while you are waiting for a permission to pass a checkpoint. It is not a Palestinian Military Order that closes the Hebrew University or Bar Illan University stiffling academic and scientific research for weeks on end. . Your 40 years of occupation in which you prohibted Palestinians from investing in their communities not only by witholding their taxes but also never granting them permits to improve run down schools, rebuild destroyed roads, reconstruct demolished homes and or get an export permit for theri produce and products. Isareli governments had systematically paralized Palestinians socially, economically, culturally and scientifically.

Dear W.H. You seem to be: 1. CONFUSING CAUSE AND EFFECT. All the detrimental phenomena you cite are - without exception - the result of hostility towards Israel i.e. an Israeli response - not an initiative. 2. IGNORING FACTS: - For example for Israeli administration there were NO universities to close since the Jordanian regime kept the "West Bank" in an almost medieval state of backwardness -- with very little running water, electrical power which were greatly improved under Israeli "repression". - This is something to remember when you bemoan the lack of infrastructure. You should also remember that since the Oslo Accord the PA has received billions making the Palestinians the highest recipients of international aid in the world. And we all know where that money ended up – so before reproaching Israel it would appear appropriate that you direct much of your ire towards the Palestinian leadership. - Up until the outbreak of the Intifada, Palestinian agriculture developed enormously under Israeli administration with the both the area cultivated and the volume of produce increasing many times over – due to the introduction of advanced cultivation and irrigation techniques – see for example "Rivers of Eden" (Oxford University Press, 1994) p. 206 - Up until the first Intifada Palestinian standards of living soared. In the mid-1980's the ratio between GDP per capita in Israel and "territories" was roughly 4:1.- 6:1 Since the Intifada and the ravages of PA rule it has dropped to roughly 20:1 and is still going down. Go figure that one. By the way would you attribute the embarrassing low GDP per capita in Egypt, Syria and Jordan to "Israeli military occupation"