Ok, here's the very long piece on my Middle East trip. Read only if interested in such things.

I spent Oct. 22-27 touring Israel and Palestine with the OneVoice organization. OneVoice was formed over 10 years ago to provide a vehicle for the moderate voices of Israel and Palestine to engage in not only a dialogue, but the practical solutions for negotiating their own two independent state solution to the ongoing crisis. This was my second trip with them in 4 years.

I traveled with an excellent group of American business people and spouses, including several authors, doctors and students. The purpose of this mission was to visit with high-ranking officials of both governments to hear their take on the state of the states, as well as to travel to several locations most egregiously effected by the current status.

In Israel, we met with Pres. Shimon Peres, opposition leader Tzipi Livni, members of the Two State Caucus of the Knesset, Dan Meridor, Vice Prime Minister Moshe Ya'alon, former PM Ehud Olmert, Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon, US Consul General Daniel Rubenstien and groups of Israeli business leaders and artists. We toured Jerusalem, held meetings in Tel Aviv and traveled to the town of Sderot, near Gaza City. Sderot is a town under siege where Kassam rockets have been fired at them from Gaza City nearly 8000 times in 8 years. The city has been retrofitted as be as close to a community bomb shelter as possible and yet over 80% of the population there suffers from post trauma distress symptoms.

In Ramallah, Palestine, we met with Major General Jibril Rajoub, former head of security in the West Bank. We met with Prime Minister Salam Fayyad; Dr. Mohammad Shtayeh, the president of Palestinian Center for Regional Studies and a governor of the Islamic Development Bank; Maher Ghoneim, Palestinian Authority Minister for the Wall and Settlement Affairs.

We traveled to the Palestinian city of Nablus to meet with leaders of the business and banking community and we also visited the city of Qalqilya, a city that has been egregiously affected both by the partition wall and the settlement expansion in the area. There we met with the mayor and sat in on a town hall meeting with residents to discuss potential land swaps in the peace deal.

Throughout, we kept meeting and questioning dozens of OneVoice Youth Leaders, both Israeli and Palestinian. These are college age students who have been trained to interact with students to engage them in discussion of the peace process and to help alleviate tensions between students of both sides.

I will not bore you with all the details of the 4 days. Suffice to say, it was often shocking and moving and always revelatory.

In short, here are my conclusions. I have been traveling to the Middle East to engage Israelis and Palestinians since 1990. In all that time, it is clear to me that both sides are closer to a realizable deal that will result in two independent states than ever before. The major stumbling blocks of borders, Jerusalem division, refugee return, water rights, security, etc., are basically being talked about in identical and negotiable terms by both sides. The Palestinians of the West Bank are highly motivated and seem more willing to compromise than ever before. There is hope and progress in much of Palestine, despite growing frustration in other areas.

Israel has put some comprehensive offers on the table before but now seems more pessimistic and reluctant to do so. There is concern about the reluctance Palestinians have to acknowledge the need for a "Jewish" state and of course, there is huge concern over Gaza and the fact that it is still controlled by Hamas. As a result, Israel seems to have lost momentum in the dialogue, having adopted a kind of "wait and see" attitude, if not one of pure pessimism. No doubt the recent shellings from Gaza in retaliation for the missile attacks that killed alleged militants last week contribute to that pessimism.

However, all that said - I am convinced that the time is NOW for the resolution of this conflict. Mr. Abbas can deliver the Palestinians of the West Bank and there is good reason to believe that if a deal is made, Hamas will be forced out of the command chair in Gaza and that Gaza will abide by the agreement. And I do believe that Mr. Netanyahu can deliver the Israelis.

In both cases, it will not be easy. The closer you get to peace, the more the militants on both sides will panic and violence will undoubtedly worsen. Such is the case of most wars.

But the amount of agreement we heard from both sides is extraordinary. The amount of progress in infrastucture, security and economy in Ramallah and Nablus and other like cities is stunning. The amount of stress around settlement expansion is higher than ever. The amount of despair from bombings, checkpoints, blockades, isolation and the ravages of over 60 years of war have taken an enormous toll.

There are leaders in place who are capable of making this peace. There are populations weary of war, ready to accept compromise and change. There is an enormous wave of change and modernity happening with the Arab Spring. This is doable. And it must be done.

In the coming weeks, I will be discussing follow up steps to relay our findings and encourage our leaders and the leaders of Israel and Palestine to re-invest in the peace process again - with no pre-conditions and with solid guidance and objectivity from the US.

This is one of the greatest single issues of the 20th and 21st centuries. It is the center of a maelstrom in the Middle East. And a source of enormous suffering and fear. To bring this conflict to a close would end a terrible chapter of enmity in the Middle East.

Ironically, the Israeli and Palestinian people share a great history and nearly identical morals and values. They are not-so-distant-cousins to each other. I believe the peace between them will expand throughout the Middle East, encouraging modernity and decency.

I am not blind. I know it will be hard to implement and that the process may take a long time. But everything I saw and heard and feel tell me, this is the time. And anything you can do to push your leaders to press for immediate and continued talks should be done.

Feel free to submit questions but know that I do not always represent the official message of OneVoice nor am I anyone's expert. I will try to answer.

Thanks to those who have taken interest and thanks for reading thru this long post. Shalom - peace - goodnite.
Jason Alexander

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