Federation Midreshet

Spring 2024 Session

Instructor: Rabbi Brian Leiken

12 sessions in person or online (hybrid)

In the nineties, many of us believed we were at the dawn of a new era. As President Clinton, Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat stood together on the White House Lawn, we believed that peace was possible. But today, as a war rages in Gaza, we acknowledge that our dreams were unreal.

Go back in time as we learn about the failed hopes of the Oslo peace accord agreements signed by Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1993 and 1995, the attacks of October 7th and the possibility of peace in Israel. The course will provide a history of the Arab-Israeli conflict, with a focus on Oslo as a critical point.

• We will come to terms with the reasons for Oslo’s failure, consider the lessons that were learned and examine the solutions that now exist for the future.
• We will spend time thinking about the horror of October 7th, and consider what Oslo means in a post-10-7 world.
• We will spend time looking at the Abraham Accords and other contemporary potential solutions.

Students will walk away from this course with a deep understanding of the myriad of challenges faced by Israel and the hopes for the future of a peace plan. A must for anyone interested in learning more about the current conflict.