From "terrorist" to Nobel Peace Prize laureate

By Karin Jamnig

This book examines the history of the Middle East conflict, focusing in particular on the figure of Yasser Arafat. It focuses primarily on the transformation undergone by the PLO Chairman and later Palestinian President Yasser Arafat from the 1970s to the 1990s, and how this affected the political situation in the Middle East and relations between Israel and Palestine. Specifically, this is examined through four questions in a comparison of the two speeches Arafat delivered to the UN General Assembly in New York in 1974 and in Geneva in 1988. In addition to the roles and tasks Arafat attributed to the UN in these speeches, his attitudes towards the states of Israel and the USA, as well as his specific objectives and strategies for achieving them, are also analysed. The paper traces Arafat's political evolution: from initially denying Israel's right to exist and elevating armed, terrorist struggle to a maxim, to later shifting his position and ultimately paving the way for realistic peace negotiations through the recognition of Israel, a move which earned him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 6209640788
• ISBN13: 9786209640780
• Release Date: March 2026
• Publisher: Our Knowledge Publishing
• Length: 124 Pages
• Weight: 0.39 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 6.0" x 9.0"