The closing off of the occupied territories, announced by Israel in March 1993 following another series of deadly attacks on Israelis, has denied many Palestinians access to their jobs in Israel and caused mounting economic hardship in the West Bank and Gaza. Later negotiations, however, were marked by increasingly direct talks between Israeli and PLO officials, reflecting both sides’ sense of urgency in the need to find a solution, as well as Israel’s recognition that the PLO was the most moderate player in the Palestinian field. In mid September 1993, a dramatic accord on mutual recognition by Israel and the PLO as well as a plan for Palestinian self-rule in Jericho and the Gaza Strip (as a first step) were reached after months of quiet diplomacy.

Meanwhile, Israel had signaled its willingness to withdraw from the Golan Heights in exchange for a peace treaty with Syria. For many it appeared as a mere matter of time until such a treaty was signed. A July 1993 Israeli shelling of villages in southern Lebanon, launched in an attempt to push the Lebanese government to act against Hizballah (see below) shelling of Israeli settlements in northern Israel, marked a new level of cooperation between Israel and Syria in 1-ebanon.