n the initial, clandestine negotiating sessions — perhaps the most crucial in building trust and proper rapport — were two economics professors from the University of Haifa, Yair Hirschfeld and Ron Pundak, dispatched under the aegis of Beilin. The PLO sent senior staff: Ahmed Qurei, the finance minister of the PLO, and

Academic Director of the Mediterranean Neighbors unit =t the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, and Dr. Moshe Naor of the department o= Israel Studies at the University of Haifa 2 EFTA_R1_01394542 EFTA02380394 <http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=3D001FqGXmOiCANktv-6TuJ0sloZQP_ZaPbm4RIYQSolb-RjDBn- kwEMxwyLxfcDlwah2E3yF=8N9EWOoZ