Can refer to the process of creating 'normal' diplomatic and economic relations between the State of
Israel and its Arab neighbors. Can also refer (critically) to Palestinians and Israelis (both individuals and groups) who are willing to work with or talk to each other "as if things are normal," and thereby reinforcing the status quo of the occupation. Normalization prior to the creation of a
Palestinian state and the end of the occupation is viewed by many Palestinians and their supporters as a betrayal of the Palestinian struggle for self-determination. In the context of diplomatic/economic relations, Egypt was the first to normalize relations in 1979 and was expelled from the
Arab League for a time; Jordan followed suit in 1994. The 2002
Arab Peace Initiative is the most comprehensive offer of normalization by the Arab world, under the condition of Palestinian statehood and a full end to occupation. See "
Arab normalization gestures to Israel," Akram Baker, Bitterlemons-international.org, July 23, 2009. See also "
What is normal about normalization," Aziz Abu Sarah, +972mag, Dec 26, 2011; and "
Co-existence vs. Co-resistance: A case against normalization," Omar H. Rahman, +972mag, Jan 3, 2012.