The landslide election in Israel of Ariel Sharon, feared and hated for his alleged anti-Arab policies, is having strong reverberations throughout the Middle East. For the first time in years, there is once again talk of regional war. For the Israelis, the vote for Sharon was not a vote against peace or against negotiations with their Palestinian neighbors and adversaries, but rather, a vote for security. David Schenker will discuss what the election of Sharon really means for the Middle East. Is it the end of negotiations? Does it represent the first step in a slide to war? And how do the Israeli elections fit into larger regional trends? Mr. Schenker will discuss these topics and how they relate to US policy in the region.

David K. Schenker is a Research Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy specializing in Arab politics and terrorism. He was previously Senior Researcher at the Investigative Project, where he analyzed Middle Eastern terrorist organizations and U.S. counter-terrorism policy. Mr. Schenker has written extensively about Palestinian politics and is most recently the author of Palestinian Democracy and Governance: An Appraisal of the Legislative Council. Conversant in Arabic and Hebrew, Mr. Schenker has managed USAID projects in Egypt and Jordan, and has been a consultant on Middle Eastern affairs for the Department of Defense.