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One thing that always bothered me during the presidential campaign was the lack of discussion about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This lack of debate probably can be attributed to the basic absence of differing opinion on the issue between President Bush and Sen. Kerry. However, to me and to many people, I think, the importance of this conflict trumps all other issues in the Middle East, including our policies in Iraq.

For many of the terrorists who hate America, it is this conflict and American support of Israelis which fans their hateful fires.

This week, two events forced me to examine the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

First, I had the pleasure of listening to two courageous young Israeli men, Noam Bahat and Shimri Zamaret, Monday in Schofield Auditorium. The men were recently released from prison, which they were sent to for refusing to serve in the Israeli army.

These brave young men were so disenchanted with the direction the conflict was going that they sacrificed their freedom to make a statement: The time has come to work for peace instead of war.

Second, as I flipped through cable TV channels early Thursday morning, I saw that Yasser Arafat, the de facto leader of Palestine since the late 1960s, had died in Paris.

Arafat was an ambiguous figure. To some, he was a terrorist. To others, he was a brave freedom fighter and a supporter of peace.

He won a Nobel Peace Prize, but often was rebuked by many in the international community for supporting terrorist acts against Israeli people.

I have no desire to cast judgment on Arafat with this column. Frankly, there are more qualified people to do that, and in respect for the recently deceased, I will allow you to draw your own conclusions about Arafat’s place in history.

What I would like to discuss is the tremendous importance of the time that will follow his death in upcoming months and years.

As Palestine chooses its next leader, America, Israel and the rest of the world will have a tremendous opportunity to forge a peaceful and prosperous relationship with the beleaguered nation’s new spokesperson.

Doing so is an absolute necessity.

Ever since Israel was established after World War II as a sanctuary for displaced Jews, the presence of Israelis has antagonized the surrounding Arab world.

Radical fundamentalist Islamic terrorism as we know it was born out of rage against Israel.

More than any other country, with the possible exception of Saudi Arabia, Israel has had a tremendous impact on the way the Arab world views the Western world.

One of the complaints levied against the U.S. by Osama bin Laden following the tragic events of Sept. 11 was that our support of Israel was aiding in the destruction of Palestinian people.

It came as no surprise when on that terrible day, Palestinians flooded the streets and danced for joy at the news of an attack on America.

We cannot afford to sit out the conflict between Israel and Palestine. If there is a frontline in the War on Terror, it is in Israel.

It is important to understand that in this conflict, both sides have a great deal of blood on their hands.

Palestinian terrorists have killed countless Israeli citizens in suicide bombings – an activity that has seen a spike in frequency since Intifada, or uprising, began in 2000.

Israel, too, has been responsible for massive civilian casualties and the oppression of Palestinian people. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his right-wing Likud Party also have attempted to construct a security wall that isolates and virtually imprisons Palestinian communities.

In this conflict, neither side is innocent. So, where do we go from here?

Now that Arafat, whom Sharon had refused to engage in serious peace talks with, is dead, it is critical the U.S. and the international community bring the Palestinian leadership and Sharon together to find a workable peace plan.

The Bush Administration’s “Roadmap to Peace” has been poorly supported and advocated due to a basically nonexistent American presence. Too often, Bush has been quick to support Sharon, even when he clearly has been wrong. Frighteningly, with the overwhelming support of evangelical Christians – many of whom view supporting Israel as a moral and religious duty – for Bush’s re-election, this trend very well could continue.

It is time for Bush to use America’s position as the most powerful nation in the world to force Sharon to sit down and have meaningful negotiations with Palestine.

As a major financial and military supporter of Israel, he has the leverage to make Sharon do this.

Bush should make it clear to Sharon and the Israeli people that he will not tolerate an unwillingness to come together to find a peaceful solution to the conflict.

Sharon is nearly as much of a radical as the Palestinians he calls terrorists, but as he has exhibited in the past year with his insistence on an Israeli withdraw from the Gaza Strip, under pressure, he will move to the center.

If he resists peace, the United States should publicly withdraw support for his government. Such a move would lead to his immediate downfall and the rise of more moderate, peace-seeking leadership in Israel.

By pressuring Israel to move toward a peaceful solution probably involving two states, the United States can send a clear message to Palestinians and to the Arab world: We are interested in peace, and we want to work diplomatically to achieve it.

Thursday morning, as I watched the reports of Arafat’s death, I thought of Noam and Shimri. I thought of their desire to live in a country free of war and full of peace.

I hope the passing of Arafat will open the door for that peace.

I hope it for America, who needs to stop feeling the collateral damage of the conflict, and I hope it for Noam and Shimri.