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So, what time period is this? An American leader, following an extended period of tacit encouragement, has finally intervened to end an Israeli military offensive that has transformed large areas of a city in the Middle East to rubble, resulting in many thousands deceased and generating international condemnation.

This military action has come after a sequence of attacks on Israel. Currently, responding to pressure from the White House, the Israeli prime minister, a rightwinger with a gift for populist rhetoric and a deep conviction of Zionist historical purpose, has agreed to a truce.

Historical Parallels

The era is not the current year, but 1982. The city is not the Gaza Strip, but Beirut. The president is the Reagan administration, not the current administration.

There are many differences between the events in Lebanon over four years past and what has happened in Palestinian territories in the last 24 months. The Hamas raid of recent times, which resulted in 1,200 and involved 250 seized, shows limited similarity with the relatively paltry actions of the PLO in the period preceding Israel's invasion of Lebanon.

Remarkable Resemblances

Some are uncanny. The US leader eventually picked up the phone the counterpart, stating to him that the situation in the capital was "a catastrophe" and explaining the relationship between their countries could be significantly impaired if the fighting carried on.

During that period, comparable to present circumstances, the war unfolded in real time on televisions worldwide. Many reporters traveled to the capital to document for the premier occasion an Arab–Israeli war without censorship by either side.

Aftermath and Consequences

The situation following the call from American leadership and the truce in the city is instructive. The liberation movement, its factions and leaders were spread across vast distances and a multiple nations.

The US administration then removed multinational troops – a violation of the arrangement with Arafat. The elected leader, the country's freshly appointed leader and Israel's chosen ally, was murdered by Syrian security services.

Regional Transformation

Comparable developments occurred across the wider Middle East. By the late seventies, the increasingly non-religious and forward-thinking concepts that had seemed to offer the potential of a new future in the Middle Eastern nations previously were undermined.

The consequences of this emerged rapidly, in short order

Across the region, Israel and the America now faced enemies who were considerably more intractable, dangerous and effective than the leftists and nationalists of earlier years.

Global Approach

Among Western nations, the outcomes of this were counterintuitive. Through the seventies, international experts and officials had tried to analyze what generated militant radicalism.

Subsequently, in the beginning of that decade, this ceased. National figures in the America, the UK and elsewhere were no longer interested in "underlying reasons" of violence.

Modern Parallels

In recent days, accounts show that current leadership informed the nation's leadership that the country could not confront global opinion and recognized national hopes for a sovereign entity.

This too was an repetition of that earlier period. In the wake of the Israeli invasion of the neighboring country, earlier administration told the nation that the strength of its armed forces alone could not "achieve permanent resolution" and accepted "proper claims of the Palestinian population."

But a US-led diplomatic initiative meant to resolve those complaints stalled completely. Abroad, Palestinian leadership observed helplessly.

Worldwide concern in the Middle East diminished. The state resisted any concessions. Subsequently, there was the major unrest, and the founding of additional militant groups.

• The cycles of the past provide serious perspectives for current peace efforts
• Enduring agreements require dealing with underlying issues rather than temporary ceasefires
• Regional dynamics continue to change in multifaceted and frequently surprising ways