The State of Israel, for millennia merely a hope, a dream, in the minds of Jews around the world, became a reality in 1948. Finally, after 2500 years of spiritual Zionism, and only about 75 years after the advent of political Zionism, a state was re-born in the ancient homeland of the Jewish people.

Yet this homeland was brought into this world by fire, and her very existence hinged on her ability to survive wave after wave of assault by those who sought to deny her a rightful place among nations.

We will trace the roots of an age-old conflict, explore nationalistic movements in the region, and analyze Israel's struggle to survive amidst seemingly overwhelming odds.

With the bold and daring steps taken by Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin, the road to peace would begin, haltingly and slowly, culminating in the Oslo Accords and Peace with Jordan in the mid 1990's. With a new millennium, a new Palestinian Authority without Yasser Arafat, coupled with a new Israeli government that would begin withdrawals from occupied territories, what options face Israel and her Arab neighbors today.