If "Palestinian" Authority President Abu Mazen (Mahmoud Abbas) and Condoleezza Rice have their ways, the summit scheduled for later this month in Annapolis, Maryland, will likely result in the successful creation of a "Palestinian" state, part of which will encompass East Jerusalem. This will not only divide the Jewish capital, it will guarantee the infusion of tens of thousands of Arabs into and around the heartland of Israel. History tells a particularly disturbing tale of what happens when the sovereignty of Jewish land is relinquished to the Arabs--gestures facilitated to broker "peace". It is riddled with such "gestures"; yet, remains devoid of said "peace".

Former Israeli Prime Minister and current Defense Minister Ehud Barak pledged, as his election campaign slogan, to withdraw from southern Lebanon, which he did in May, 2000, as per agreement with Syria and Lebanon. You ask, "What was Israel doing in southern Lebanon in the first place?" The answer is clear, as it represents the "common denominator" in most every situation where Israel has been forced to go on the offensive: to protect her national security. In this case, Israel would go into Lebanon in 1985 to create a ten mile buffer between her northern border and the constant barrage of shelling from the PLO and Iranian/Syrian-backed Hezbollah forces. The conflict resulted in Arafat's PLO being driven from Lebanon, but Hezbollah remained.  In May of 2000, after sweeping the Israeli elections, Prime Minister Ehud Barak withdrew Israeli troops from Lebanon. This left a vacuum; an opportunity for the terrorist organization known as Hezbollah to bring the fight to Israel's doorstep. They did not disappoint.  

Middle East Peace - An Unwinnable Game of Chess with the King of Kings