but Arafat and the Palestinians refused - they'd rather kill every single Jew, if they could, and destroy Israel in the process.

Israel has been in a constant state of war since its founding in 1948, and under a constant and fearsome threat of Arab aggression even before that date. In the face of a steady stream of rabid Islamic lunatics committing unspeakable terrorist attacks on a daily basis, seemingly impervious to all attempts at rational dialogue, what choice does Israel have but to take all necessary measures to defend herself while at the same time seeking, hopelessly it appears, for that Palestinian peace partner of good faith who'll negociate a peace treaty rather than trying to blow up everyone in sight?