Editing Yasser Arafat (section)

===Oslo Accords===
[[File:Bill Clinton, Yitzhak Rabin, Yasser Arafat at the White House 1993-09-13.jpg|thumb|[[Yitzhak Rabin]], [[Bill Clinton]], and Arafat during the [[Oslo Accords]] on 13 September 1993]]
[[File:Flickr - Government Press Office (GPO) - THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE LAUREATES FOR 1994 IN OSLO..jpg|thumb|right|Arafat, [[Shimon Peres]] and Rabin receiving the [[Nobel Peace Prize]] following the [[Oslo Accords]], 10 December 1994]]

In the early 1990s, Arafat and leading Fatah officials engaged the Israeli government in a series of secret talks and negotiations that led to the [[Oslo Accords|1993 Oslo Accords]].<ref name="Rejectionists"/><ref name="Palestinian peace">{{cite book|last=Carter|first=James|author-link=Jimmy Carter|title=Palestine Peace Not Apartheid|url=https://archive.org/details/palestinepeaceno00cart|url-access=registration|year=2006|publisher=Simon & Schuster, Inc.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/palestinepeaceno00cart/page/147 147]–150|location=New York|isbn=978-0-7432-8502-5}}</ref> The agreement called for the implementation of Palestinian self-rule in portions of the West Bank and Gaza Strip over a five-year period, along with an immediate halt to and gradual removal of Israeli settlements in those areas. The accords called for a Palestinian police force to be formed from local recruits and Palestinians abroad, to patrol areas of self-rule. Authority over the various fields of rule, including education and culture, [[social welfare provision|social welfare]], [[direct tax]]ation and tourism, would be transferred to the Palestinian interim government. Both parties agreed also on forming a committee that would establish cooperation and coordination dealing with specific economic sectors, including utilities, industry, trade and communication.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Peace/gazajer.html|title=Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area|access-date=17 June 2024|date=4 May 1994|publisher=The American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise |website=Jewish Virtual Library}}</ref>

Prior to signing the accords, Arafat—as Chairman of the PLO and its official representative—signed two letters renouncing violence and officially recognizing Israel. In return, Prime Minister [[Yitzhak Rabin]], on behalf of Israel, officially recognized the PLO.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/p/nea/rls/22579.htm|title=Israel-PLO Recognition: Exchange of Letters Between PM Rabin and Chairman Arafat|access-date=17 June 2024|date=3 September 1993|publisher=U.S. State Department Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs}}</ref> The following year, Arafat and Rabin were awarded the [[Nobel Peace Prize]], along with [[Shimon Peres]].<ref name="Oslo Accords">{{cite news|title=1994: Israelis and Arafat share peace prize|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/14/newsid_3694000/3694744.stm |publisher=[[BBC News]] |date=3 September 1993|access-date=16 June 2024}}</ref> The Palestinian reaction was mixed. The [[Rejectionist Front]] of the PLO allied itself with Islamists in a common opposition against the agreements. It was rejected also by [[Palestinian refugee]]s in Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan as well as by many Palestinian intellectuals and the local leadership of the Palestinian territories. However, the inhabitants of the territories generally accepted the agreements and Arafat's promise for peace and economic well-being.<ref name="After Oslo">{{harvnb|Aburish|1998|pages=[https://archive.org/details/arafatfromdefend0001abur/page/262 262–292]}}</ref>