No one in Gaza is under the illusion that peace is fully here. The cease-fire agreement announced on Wednesday in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, represents the first phase of a U.S.-brokered plan: Hostilities are to pause, the Israeli military will pull back to agreed-on positions and Hamas is to release all hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Humanitarian access is expected to increase, and more detailed arrangements for reconstruction, governance and security will be negotiated in subsequent phases. While these steps are significant, the hard work now begins — turning promises into realities, and ensuring that rebuilding does not stop at concrete and steel but extends to trust and coexistence.
The Centre for Liberal Modernity together with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation cordially invite you to attend our international conference ‘Geopolitical Zeitenwende? Ukraine and the Future of the EU’ on Wednesday, 12 November 2025 at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation Academy.
A year of dialogue: Israelis, Palestinians, and regional actors are working together in the Middle East Network to discuss ways out of the war in Gaza, the release of hostages, and a peaceful future. On September 15 and 16, the network successfully concluded its fifth round of dialogue. Organized by the Center for Liberal Modernity, the exchange builds trust, generates new ideas, and, for the first time, brings together voices from politics, civil society, and academia.
When President Emmanuel Macron sat down with Israel’s Channel 12, he declared that appointing a vice president to the Palestinian Authority was a sufficient reform step to justify France’s recognition of a Palestinian state. With those words, Macron handed Mahmoud Abbas a free pass—applauding a cosmetic gesture while ignoring the single reform Palestinians have been demanding for nearly two decades: the right to vote in free presidential and legislative elections.
For almost two years – since October 7, 2023, when the terrorist organization Hamas attacked Israel, murdered 1,200 civilians, and took 240 hostages – war has been raging in Gaza. The conflict is being fought with unrelenting ferocity – on both sides. Kerstin Müller, Program Director for the Middle East Network, assesses the current situation and explains why recognizing a Palestinian state would currently be purely symbolic politics.
The Middle East Network consists of a small group of political experts, activists, and representatives from think tanks and NGOs from Israel, the Palestinian Territories, as well as regional actors from Egypt and Saudi Arabia. In this short video, several members share what motivates them to work toward changing the dynamics of the conflict and what opportunities they see in the crisis.
The existential fear of death forms the deepest root of politics, Vlatko Sekulovic writes. While nationalism offers immortality through the nation and perpetuates hostility towards “the Other”, liberalism aims at transforming fear via creativity and freedom thus providing space for dialogue and plurality. A new critique of nationalism must therefore expose false promises, the Serbian lawyer and former Secretary of State, demands.
