The Lost Years: Radical Islam, Intifada, and Wars in the Middle East, 2001-2006

In exhaustive detail, Enderlin (Shattered Dreams) presents the Israeli-Palestian conflict at its most disheartening. The author chronicles the failure of the Camp David negotiations, the rise of Ariel Sharon and the ensuing ebb and flow of violence, from Israeli airstrikes and assassinations, to Palestinian suicide bombings and rockets. According to Enderlin, Sharon's administration let the peace process stagnate and gave no quarter to Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, both public opponents of armed resistance.As Israeli restrictions and military operations severely checked the efficacy of the Palestinian security services, Arafat was unable to staunch the violence and Israel-and the U.S.-freely blamed the Palestinian Authority for failing to achieve a ceasefire. Meanwhile,""anguish was palpable in the Israeli streets,"" and in the Palestinian territories-kept under increasingly harsh curfews and closures-""the situation. was catastrophic."" From the Intifada to the war in Lebanon,Enderlin brings clarity to the chaos and his sober conclusion is heartrending-""Could this have been possible to prevent? Certainly! If there had been a serious peace process.... If..""