derated leaders were assassinated. By 1988, Arafat had taken the diplomatic road one step further when he not only announced the right of the state of Israel to exist, but, renounced Palestine Liberation Organization terrorism. The perceived commitment to these ideals caused Israel to finally agree to serious talks with the Palestine Liberation Organization. The result of these discussions was that today the Palestinian people live under partial self-rule and seem on the way to obtaining the homeland they have yearned for years. On September 9, 1993, in letters to Israeli Prime Minister Rabin and Norwegian Foreign Minister Holst, Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Arafat committed the PLO to cease all violence and terrorism. On September 13, 1993, the Declaration of Principles between the Israelis and Palestinians was signed in Washington, DC.The Lebanon WarIn Lebanon, the fragile state of no-war, no-peace, in place since 1973, began to break down as the Palestine Liberation Organization strengthened its mini-state in Lebanon, establishing PLO military training centers, and escalated artillery and cross-border attacks on civilians in northern Israel. Israelis were forced to spend long periods of time in bomb shelters. The immediate trigger for Israel’s operation into Lebanon was the attempted assassination of the Israeli ambassador in London on June 3, 1982. The next day, Israeli jets attacked PLO targets in Lebanon and the PLO responded with rocket and artillery barraged into northern Israel. On June 6, Israeli ground troops began their advance into Lebanon and quickly overran PLO positions in the south. Israel laid siege to the PLO in West Beirut leading to a PLO surrender and agreement to evacuate Lebanon. The evacuation of the PLO failed to bring stability to conflict-ridden Lebanon and Christian-Palestinian tensions remained high. Israel’s limited objective of removing the PLO’s threat to north...
