The Oslo Accords

The Oslo Accords, a set of agreements reached between the government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), were pivotal in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Negotiated secretly in Oslo, Norway, and signed in 1993, with a subsequent agreement in 1995, these accords marked the first direct, face-to-face agreement between Israel and the PLO. They resulted in mutual recognition between the parties and the establishment of the Palestinian National Authority as a self-governing interim administration in parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The accords were intended as a framework for the future Israeli-Palestinian negotiations on final status issues, such as Jerusalem, refugees, and borders. Despite initial optimism, the Oslo process faced numerous challenges and criticisms, and the hoped-for resolution of the conflict remained elusive.