Can the cycle of violence be stopped?
The ceasefire negotiated by CIA Director George Tenet in mid-June appears to be effectively over. In its place a cycle of ever-escalating violence has developed. On the ground the violence is going unchecked as each side responds to what it sees as provocation from the other. Israel’s assassination policy, what it calls “targeted killings”, was an attempt to deal with the threat of suicide bombers and to stop attacks on soldiers and settlers in Palestinian areas. The policy, which resulted in the death of several prominent Palestinian military and political leaders, appears to have provoked more retaliation – including a deadly suicide bomb attack in the centre of Jerusalem. Calls for international intervention, which might break the cycle, have so far proved fruitless. The United States administration seems unwilling to get bogged down in the politics of the region. Palestinians are still calling for international observers, but the Israeli Government is highly sceptical, and the inte
