The Israeli-Palestinian conflict in 2014
From failed peace talks, to Palestine recognitions across Europe, it has been a tough diplomatic year for Israel, and though the year ended with the successful attempt to block the Palestinians’ Security Council resolution, the conflict seems to be going from bad to worse.
The past year has been a turbulent one for Israeli diplomacy, particularly when it came to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the Foreign Ministry did not always rise to the challenge with poise and rationality. From failed peace talks to a damning summer war, with constant settlement construction looming overhead – this is how history books will remember 2014 in this corner of the Middle East.Crash landing for peace talks
US Secretary of State John Kerry's peace effort started in July of 2013 in Washington with Kerry smiling from ear to ear behind the podium of the press room at the State Department, flanked by Israeli negotiator Tzipi Livni and Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.
But the optimism that accompanied the launch of the talks quickly dissolved and shortly before the clock ran out on the April 29, 2014 self-imposed deadline, talks collapsed altogether, serving as the opening shot for a string of losses for Israel on world stage, and a year of fleeting, small victories for the Palestinians.