The final status phase of the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations is considered the last step in resolving outstanding issues and completing a full peace agreement. With all attention on the arduous interim period, the complexities of the final status issues have attracted little popular discussion. Meanwhile, these negotiations, expected to be the most difficult and contentious in the history of Arab-Israeli peacemaking, are imminent.

This publication is intended to be a guide to the main final status issues: Jerusalem, settlements, refugees and borders. It examines the rationale behind the final status phase as envisioned by the drafters of the Oslo Accords and explores the context of the issues, the basic negotiating positions of Israel and the Palestinian Authority, and recent proposals for the resolution of these difficult issues.