RAMALLAH, West Bank—Saeb Erekat, the untiring Palestinian peace negotiator, believed until his dying day in an Israeli hospital this week that only diplomacy would solve the Middle East conflict and lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel. It was not an easy path to take, both because of Israel’s intransigence and because after years of fruitless negotiations, many Palestinians turned against the peace process—and its negotiators. Still, Saeb, who had a sharp tongue and a quick wit, and who was my friend, remained unflinching.
I met Saeb in Jerusalem in 1983, upon his return from doctoral studies at the University of Bradford in England. Right away, he impressed me with his eloquence, commitment, and energy, and I was glad he had come back to join our struggle for independence. Saeb was from Abu Dis near Jerusalem, born 12 years before the start of the Israeli occupation. He left for the United States when he was 17 to attend college, and in 1979 obtained his master’s degree in political science from San Francisco State University. His PhD focused on peace and conflict studies.
