We can hope Israel finally is heading toward ending the occupation that has destroyed our society's ethical backbone and has turned us into a pariah among the cultured nations.

However, if the new plan for an agreement with the Palestinians really does lead to some kind of solution, Israeli society will be left facing tremendous problems. One example is the "good wishes" Prof. Hillel Weiss sent to the Hebron Division commander - he told him he hoped the officer's children would be orphaned. Although these are unforgivable, inhuman statements, we have to ask ourselves how a person who clearly is neither a fool nor an ignoramus could say such things.

When it comes to ideology, in the most profound sense of the word, Israeli citizens can be roughly divided into two groups. The first follows the liberal-modern tradition. Its worldview is guided by concepts including universal human rights and the rule of law. It considers human life, not the state or the land, a universal value. For this group, Zionism is the existence of a state that serves as a national home for the Jews, not the realization of a divine promise. When it comes to rights and suffering, Palestinians are no less important than Jews.