The geographic distinctions are important, as the Palestinians are divided geographically, with the Gaza Strip separated from the West Bank by the country of Israel, with more Palestinians living within Israel. The Fatah faction of the PLO emerged as the one group with sustainable political power, lead by Yasir Arafat. However, marked Islamic fundamentalism, as exemplified by Hamas was an important influence. Various groups had developed in Gaza and in

Perhaps this is the fatal flaw in the Road Map, but according to President Abbas, "the Annapolis summit saw a resumption of talks between the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) and Israel after a seven-year hiatus. Both sides pledged to do everything possible to draft a peace settlement by the end of 2008, as well as to come to an agreement on the form of a future independent Palestinian state." Unfortunately,

Arab Israeli Conflict The Arab-Israeli conflict The current Arab-Israeli conflict has a long standing history which goes back to the 1910s when the Ottoman Empire was still in place. During the WWI, the Germans sided with the Ottoman and the British sided with the Arabs in revolting against the Ottoman Empire. The British promised the Arabs self rule and to the Jews they promised them a homeland in Palestine (Kattan, et.al., 2009:Pp59).

Rapid innovations in technology, particularly telecommunications and transportation, have accelerated the globalization process in recent years, and a number of positive outcomes have been associated with these trends, including increased levels of international commerce and improved cross-cultural understanding and communications. Despite these significant positive outcomes, the same globalization processes have also further exacerbated existing economic and political inequalities between developed nations such as the United States and the United Kingdom.

Wall on Palestinian economy and the Future of the Middle East In April 2002, the Israeli government began building a complex series of walls, barriers, and trenches within the western border of the West Bank. The Wall is a separation barrier constructed in part by massive concrete walls, including watch towers that strike the observer (Kearney, 2003). The Wall surrounds the Palestinian city of Qalqilya, imprisoning a population of 400,000 with

ISRAEL'S SUCCESSES: Israel has accomplished much in its 48 years to be proud of. It has created a country from scratch, finding ways to farm efficiently in a climate not completely hospitable to farming. It has established a strong educational system. It has fought six wars and managed to defend its country successfully even when it was surrounded by hostile neighbors. It has brought the region to the point where the