For 32 years, the Palestine Liberation Organization (P.L.O.) has called for the destruction of Israel. Last week, in a historic vote, the P.L.O.'s assembly formally ended that order.
"Make up your minds! Are we going to have a Palestinian dream or not?" P.L.O. President Yasser Arafat demanded of the 669 members of the assembly. An overwhelming majority voted for the dream of peace and a homeland.
The vote, said Israel's Prime Minister Shimon Peres, "may be the most important change in the past 100 years."
On Friday, there was more good news. U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher got Israel and Lebanon to agree to put an end to weeks of fighting between Israeli forces and Muslim terrorists in southern Lebanon.