The Peace Now movement, which began in 1978 as a counterforce to nationalist demands that Israel permanently retain all of the Arab territories it captured in 1967, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this week, at a time when Israelis are sharply divided over the situation in the territories and their future status.
In 1978, 348 Israel Defense Force reserve officers, the nucleus of the movement, signed a letter to then Premier Menachem Begin warning him that the “Eretz Yisrael” (Greater Israel) movement could not bring peace.
On Sunday, Peace Now presented an updated copy to Premier Yitzhak Shamir, signed by 1,250 reserve officers. The letter urges a political solution to the problem of the administered territories and the region as a whole.
In an advertisement published in Israeli newspapers Monday, Peace Now called for the acceptance of the “land for peace” formula.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
