Minister Zevulun Hammer’s Ambivalent Attitude to the Peace Process with Egypt
Keywords:
Autonomy, Camp David Accord, Lebanon War, Mafdal, Oslo Accord, Peace Treaty with Egypt, Settlements, Yamit Evacuation, Young Revolution, Zevulun HamerAbstract
The article examines the attitude of Zevulun Hammer, a Member of Knesset and minister in the government, to the peace process with Egypt, starting from the Sadat visit in November 1977 to the Yamit evacuation in January 1982. The article points to the transition in Hammer’s political position from his unambiguous right-wing stance during the 1960s and 1970s, which ruled out any territorial concessions, to his becoming a moderate dove in Begin’s right-wing government. He essentially continued to adhere to the principle of the Greater Land of Israel and the construction of settlements in Judea and Samaria, but at the same time supported the peace agreement with Egypt, despite his reservations regarding the autonomy plan that was part of it. Similarly, Hammer was considered to be a moderate during the Lebanon War, relative to the Likud’s ministers.
His position did not stem from an unequivocal identification with the positions of the Israeli Left, but rather it took a complex, restrained and cautious attitude toward the Left’s policies. However, this did not affect Hammer’s main position that supported territorial concessions if achieving peace was feasible, although it ultimately led to his return to the hawkish camp in the 1990s, during the Oslo Accords.
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