Jan 26, 2026
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Q. At last week’s Davos conclave, we witnessed a group of billionaires from Trump’s Board of Peace declaring the beginning of phase II of Trump’s Gaza peace plan in grandiose fashion. Realistic?
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A. I​​​​ was reminded of an appearance I made at a ‘Davos in the Middle East’ conference a few years ago at a Dead Sea resort in Jordan. I was on a panel with senior ministers and commentators from the region and beyond, discussing some very problematic aspect of the region’s many conflicts and crises, in Davos-style soundbites.
My turn to talk would come last. As I listened to those speaking before me, I was struck by what seemed to be a bizarre and totally unrealistic note of artificial optimism. I resolved to set things straight with a dose of realism: grim facts, grim assessments. No one reacted; no one commented. My panel’s session ended and the conference room emptied out.
As we walked out, a prominent Israeli industrialist took me aside. “Yossi,” he said. “Don’t spoil the show. The idea at these Davos conferences is to radiate optimism that nourishes an investment climate. It’s all about business. No room for realism.”
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Yossi Alpher's Death Tango: Ariel Sharon, Yasser Arafat and Three Fateful Days in March
"Anyone seeking to understand how Israelis and Palestinians traded the hopes of Oslo for something approaching hopelessness is well-advised to read this book. With penetrating analysis and elegant prose, Yossi Alpher has told the gripping story of three days nearly two decades ago that continue to haunt would-be peacemakers. Yossi’s faithful readers will not be disappointed with his latest effort."
Ambassador Frederic C. Hof, Bard College
"A riveting account of the crucial days in March 2002 when the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was profoundly changed for the worse. The peace camp has never recovered from those wrenching days, and we live now without any hope of a just settlement. Alpher is a highly respected expert who has spent decades studying this conflict from both sides."
Bruce Riedel, Director of the Brookings Intelligence Project
"A critical assessment of a key period in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict never before presented in such detail. The best and most capable players at the executive and political levels proved unable to forge any resolution, final or partial, because both parties continued to maintain an insurmountable gulf between themselves. This is a MUST read for anyone daring to tackle the future of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and of Israel-Arab relations in general."
Efraim Halevy, former Head of the Mossad (1998-2002)
Oraib Khader and Avi Bar-On are youngish Palestinian and Israeli bachelors with security experience, readiness to do business with one another, a shared fondness for women and money, and total cynicism about the lack of peace between their two peoples.
Oraib and Avi can never become true friends: the cultural and political gaps are too wide. But as they confront a failed peace process and a bleak peace future, they readily become business partners: shady business that exploits a lot of naïve international peace aspirations.
As Oraib sums up on a visit to Sarpsborg, Norway, where the ultimately-failed Oslo peace talks were held, “There is a lesson here for those who still doggedly and hopelessly pursue a two-state solution in the Middle East. Get smart. Get out of the Israeli-Palestinian peace business. Step back and let the Jews and Arabs screw one another while making money.”