1987 The West Bank and Gaza Strip

We have struggled with radically different conceptions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as we sought to examine the contentious and embattled issue of Israeli control of territory considered occupied by some, liberated by others. There was no unanimity of through to our conclusions. There was however, a deeper respect for the human sensitivities of all involved and a clearer sense of the confrontation's complexities.

We invited a wide range of Israeli and Palestinian scholars, journalists, strategic experts, economics, human and civil-rights advocates, religious leaders, and diplomats to engage in a vigorous and free exchange of ideas. They were invited to participate in an academic endeavor, one marked by a spirit of reconciliation, not recrimination.