The Minefields of Mediation: An Overview.

This special issue explores significant problems of peace mediation. How do these "minefields of mediation'' arise, how do mediators' ways of handling them impact the negotiation process, and what can mediators do to overcome them? Using examples from the last quarter century, and from the Middle East in particular, the authors examine these questions at different stages of the mediation process, from its initiation to its culmination, and with reference to different forms of mediation, including facilitation, muscular, and multiparty mediation. This short introduction provides a systematic overview of some of the most pertinent mediation challenges, with reference to who the mediators are, when the mediation takes place and what the issues of contention and possible outcomes are. These areas are of course all intertwined, and, as the articles in this issue point out, are also very much influenced by changes in the domestic, regional and international environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]