Israel and its American backers recently missed a historic opportunity when they ignored the Arab peace initiative, which offered normalized relations to the Jewish state in exchange for a withdrawal from occupied land. They would be foolish to miss another one that emerged this week at a four-way summit that gathered the French, Qatari, Turkish and Syrian leaders in Damascus. Syrian President Bashar Assad announced on Thursday at the close of the meeting that his country had submitted a proposal to the Israelis through Turkish mediators to launch direct peace talks with Israel, and it would be in the Jewish state's interests to accept the offer.

Previous Syrian peace overtures have been rejected by the Jewish state as "not serious." But if the Israelis have any lingering doubts about the soberness and earnestness with which this latest offer was made, they should step back and look at the partners who have implicitly lent their backing to the initiative. French President Nicolas Sarkozy is not only putting France's support behind the proposal, but also that of the European Union, whose rotating presidency his country currently holds. Turkey brings to the equation diplomatic credentials that are perhaps unmatched in the region, as Ankara had shown itself to be the only state capable of straddling the divides between Russia and the United States, Arabs and Israelis and Iran and the West. The added involvement of Qatar, whose leader Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani currently heads the Gulf Cooperation Council, means that the road to peace could eventually lead to countless economic opportunities.

The peace process that's on offer also extends well beyond the borders of the Syrian-Israeli conflict. Assad hinted that Lebanese President Michel Sleiman could join the talks, giving Israel a hitherto unheard of chance to secure its northern border. A peace deal with Syria would also go a long way toward neutralizing many of the "threats" that the Jewish state currently faces, like that of a nuclear-armed Iran.

Admittedly, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is not in a position to begin direct talks with Syria, since he may well be indicted on one or more corruption charges in the coming days or weeks. But Assad's offer ought to resonate with members of the Israeli public, who have been given a priceless gift in the form of an opportunity to ensure their own security in the region, as well as that of their children and grandchildren. The Israeli people would do well to reflect on exactly what that means, and they should start by asking themselves what kind of Israel they want. Is it really worth it to keep occupying other people's land and killing Arabs for a country that then has to cope with the inevitable backlash of its own violence by installing sirens in every city to alert them that it's time to get underground in their bunkers? Or do they want to live in peace with their neighbors? The choice is theirs to make.