Efraim Halevy

Hussein trusted Halevy both with sensitive Jordanian internal issues and clandestine contact to act as a back channel with Israel whenever relations reached an impasse.

As a result of his warm relations with Hussein, Halevy, along with Yitzhak Rabin, is credited with being a major force in movement towards the Israel–Jordan peace treaty[2] Between 1990 and 1995, under the directorship of Shabtai Shavit, he served as deputy director and as head of the headquarters branch.

In August 2003, he resigned from this position[4] after Dov Weissglass, the bureau chief of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, got too much power and he believed the Roadmap for peace was not favourable for Israel,[1] and Prime Minister Sharon refrained from accepting his recommendations on a host of issues, and went to teach at Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

He believes that Israel should take up Hamas's offer of a long-term truce and try negotiating, because the Islamic movement is respected by Palestinians and generally keeps its word, he said.

Halevy was interviewed about his book on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on 24 April 2006, and by guest host Brian Ross on the Charlie Rose Show[8] In a January 2007 interview with the Portuguese newspaper Expresso, he stated that the world is "in the midst of a Third World War" with radical Islam, and predicted that it will take at least 25 years for the West to win.

[9] In November 2011 Halevy said Iran should be prevented from becoming a nuclear power but expressed opposition to an attack which he said "could affect not only Israel, but the entire region for 100 years."

[11] Halevy has written extensively on Israel's relationship with the United States, generally taking a moderate, pragmatic view of the Washington-Jerusalem alliance.

"[12] For 23 October 2012, during the United States presidential campaign between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, Halevy published an op-ed piece "Who Threw Israel Under the Bus?"

In it Halevy cited several key instances over the years in which the "Republican White House acted in a cold and determined manner, with no regard for Israel's national pride, strategic interests or sensitivities" but that "no Democratic president has ever strong-armed Israel on any key national security issue."

He underscored the importance of the upcoming 17 March 2015 elections, which from his perspective "constitute an unprecedented opportunity to determine Israel's policy vis-à-vis the peace process.