Durham E-Theses Domestic politics in Israeli peace-making, 1988-1994. Al-Barari, Hassan Abdulmuhdi How to cite: Al-Barari, Hassan Abdulmuhdi (2001) Domestic politics in Israeli peace-making, 1988-1994., Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/1229/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk DOMESTIC POLITICS IN ISRAELI PEACE-MAKING, 1988-1994 Hassan Abdulmuhdi Al-Barari The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published in any form, including Electronic and the Internet, without the author's prior written consent. All information derived from this thesis must be acknowledged appropriately. A THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF DURHAM DEPARTMENT OF POLITICS 2001 -8 MAR2002 TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS i ABSTRACT iv DECLARATION V DEDICATION Ai ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Vl l INTRODUCTION 1 Themesand Ideas 2 ...-" ..................................................................... "----............................... Methodology 4 ..................................................................................................................... Theory 4 .................................................................................................................. Interviews .............................................................................................................. The Structureof the Thesis 7 .............................................................................................. CHAPTER ONE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK: HOW TO THINK ABOUT FOREIGN POLICY ANALYSIS 11 The Level of Analysis Problem 13 .................................................................................... The Outside-In/SystemicApproaches 16 .......................................................................... The Inside-Out/DomesticApproaches 21 .......................................................................... Approachesto the Study Foreign Policy 24 of .................................................................. The BureaucraticPolitics Model 27 ................................................................................... Critique of the BureaucraticPolitics Model ConceptsUtilised ................................................................. Conclusions 42 ..................................................................................................................... ii CHAPTER TWO THE ROAD TO 1988: INTERNAL DYNAMICS AND THE MAKING OF A PEACE PROCESS 44 A Zero-SumStruggle, 1948-1967 45 ................................................................................. From Zero-Sumto Mixed-Motive Relations, 1967-1977 54 ............................................ The Public Debatein Israel 60 ........................................................................................... Likud's Ascendanceto Power, 1977-1984 69 ................................................................... The National Unity Government,1984-1988 77 ............................................................. Conclusions. 82 .............................. CHAPTER THREE THE INTIFADA: A TURNING POINT 84 Israeli Reactionsto the Intifada Division within the Elite in Responseto the Intifada.a 99 .................................................. The National Unity Governmentand the Intifada 108 ...................................................... The Intifada and the 1988 Election, 116 ............................................................................. Another National Unity Governmentand Another PeaceInitiative. 123 ......................... Conclusions 133 ................................................................................................................... CHAPTER FOUR DEMOCRATIC REFORM WITHIN THE LABOUR PARTY: THE MOTIVE TO GAIN POWER 136 The Israeli Electoral System Coalition Formation 138 and .............................................. Democratic Reform within Labour.r 144 ............................................................................. SelectingCandidates Through Primaries The 1992 Election 159 ......................................................................................................... The Formation of the Government 173 .............................................................................. Conclusions 176 ................................................................................................................... 111 CHAPTER FIVE THE POLITICS OF PERSONALITY 180 ConceptsUtilised 181 .......................................................................................................... Rabin's Belief System 183 .................................................................................................. Rabin's Perception the Middle East 187 of ........................................................................ The Rivalry with Peres 196 ................................................................................................. Explaining the Evolution Rabin's Thinking 209 of .......................................................... Conclusions 217 ................................................................................................................... CHAPTER SIX EXTERNAL DYNAMICS AND DOMESTIC IMPERATIVES 220 The United States in Israel's Foreign Policy 221 .............................................................. Jordan 234 ....................................................... The Impact of the Global and Regional Changes ................ Conclusions 246 ................................................................................................................... CONCLUSION 249 GLOSSARY 259 BIBLIOGRAPHY 263 iv ABSTRACT This thesis provides an explanation of why Israel in the years between 1988 and 1994 decided on what might be termed a path to peace with both the Palestinians and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. It argues that, in Israel, peacemaking that entails any form of territorial concession is largely an issue that can be best understood in terms of domestic politics. Accordingly, at the heart of this thesis lies the assumption that the key to explaining Israel's road to peace lies in an appreciation of the dynamics of Israel's domestic politics. Part at least of this story is an understandingof certain key moments in the formation of Israeli thinking about movement towards a peace with the Palestinians. The thesis therefore examines the impact of the Intifada on Israeli thinking as well as detailing crucial turning points in domesticpolitics, not least Labour's electoral victory in 1992 and the subsequentformation of the most dovish governmentin Israel's history. The thesis also pays attention to the politics of personality and the role of key figures, such as Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres,in the politics that permitted Israel's move to peace. To facilitate such an understanding,the study employs some analytical concepts from what might be described as the 'middle-range' theories, for example the so-called Bureaucratic Politics Model but its judgementsare also fundamentally informed by both interview and primary sourcematerial. Hence, overall the thesis looks at the internal dynamics of Israeli peacemaking and demonstratesthat, although external factors are certainly, as the last chapter argues an important part of the story, the decision to make peace was also rooted in the dynamic complex domesticpolitics of Israel. V DECLARATION I, HassanBarari, the author of this researchdeclare that the content of this thesis is my original work. None of the material contained in this study has previously been submitted by me for a degreein this or any other university. All the material, in this thesis,which is not my own work, has been appropriatelycited HassanA. Barari 2001 Copyright The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without their prior written consent,and information derived from it should be acknowledged. V1 DEDICATION This work is dedicatedto my late parents ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to extend my gratitude to a number of people and institutions without whom this thesis would have never been possible. My supervisor, Professor Caroline Kennedy-Pipe, has been of great help during the period I spent preparing and writing this thesis. Her support, constant encouragement, and above all her supervision style have made things much easier. Her thorough assessmentand critique of the thesis are greatly appreciated. I am equally grateful to Professor Mustafa Hamarneh, Director of the Centre for Strategic Studiesat the University of Jordan. His support, friendship, and faith in me as well as his intellectual guidance have played a crucial role throughout my academic journey. I am also indebted to the staff of the Centrefor StrategicStudies