Henry Kissinger's Prescription for Suppressing the First Intifada, 31 January 1988

VOL. 31

2001/02

No. 4
P. 99
Special Documents
Henry Kissinger's Prescription for Suppressing the First Intifada, 31 January 1988
ABSTRACT

In June 1988, under the title "Kissinger Behind Closed Doors," Harper's Magazine published an extraordinary confidential memorandum describing a breakfast meeting held by American Jewish leaders with Henry Kissinger on 31 January 1988 to discuss the Palestinian uprising that had broken out almost two months earlier. The memorandum, written by Julius Berman, the former chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, and sent to a group of friends, was leaked to the press in March 1988. According to Harper's, "Kissinger reacted angrily to the leaking of the memo, but did not dispute its accuracy.
JPS finds it appropriate to republish the memorandum, leaving it to the reader to ponder its relevance to Israel's conduct during Operation Defensive Shield and to the current talk of convening a peace conference.