Don T - "Two thousand years ago Israel was a country called Palestine, where Jews and Arabs lived out their lives in peace and unity."

Not so Don, there has NEVER been a country called Palestine, that is very much a 'modern' invention.

"In historical contexts, especially predating the establishment of the State of Israel, Palestine was mostly a geographical term, particularly used in Greek, Latin, Arabic, and other languages taking their geographical vocabulary from them; it comprised the Roman sub-province of Syria Palaestina, roughly equivalent to ancient Canaan (including the Biblical kingdoms of Israel, Judah, Moab, Ammon, and Philistia) and thus included much of the land on either side of the Jordan River although with further political sub-divisions along the River Jordan valley ." (Source Wikipedia)

With regard to negotiation, there must be a start point that indicates that the negotiating principle will prove fruitful. While Israel has always said that it is prepared to live at peace with its neighbours on the sole condition that they respect and recognise the right of the State of Israel to exist in peace. Hamas now must actually govern, useless threats and empty rhetoric will no longer suffice. For those who wish to promote the path of negotiation, it should not be too difficult to identify who's attitude has to undergo a bit of a sea-change. If it is internationally unacceptable for the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran to deny the holocaust and declare his desire that "Israel be wiped from the map", then it is clearly unacceptable for the elected representatives of the Palestinian people to hold the same view.

Now negotiate from there.