Introduction

On 12 October 2003, a group of leading Israelis and Palestinians completed a draft framework for a final-status agreement between the two parties to the Middle East conflict. This framework, known as the Geneva Initiative, proposed a model for the settlement of critical issues such as security arrangements, Jerusalem, borders and refugees. The Initiative was officially launched on 1 December 2003 in Geneva, in a high-profile ceremony hosted by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA),which facilitated and provided support for the negotiations leading up to the launch .

The HD Centre worked closely with the DFA and the Israeli and Palestinian parties, to support the distribution and promotion of the Initiative and dissemination of its message of peace through negotiation.