ABSTRACT
In the Arab-Israeli conflict, the intertwined issues of sovereignty and territory are especially complex because of shifts in attitudes and policy of the contending parties. The complexities of Israel’s dispute with the Arabs over its borders are compounded by the fact that nearly all the elements that play a role in boundary conflicts are present in the Arab-Israeli case. The political borders between Israel and its neighbors are in a state of flux: they remain in large measure those that were determined by military armistice agreements and ceasefire disengagements. At Taba, on the southern end of the Israel-Sinai border, the prospects for emergence of a boundary of assimilation are better, despite the slow pace of negotiations over Taba’s jurisdictional status. A boundary that held promise of becoming one of assimilation is the “Good Fence” boundary that links Israel to the Christian enclaves in southern Lebanon.
