This study would not have been possible without the active support
and sponsorship of the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy
Research. I am particularly grateful to Dr. Robert J. Pranger, director
of AEI's Foreign and Defense Policy Studies, and to Dr. Richard Erb,
a resident fellow at AEI.

The ideas and information contained in the study were developed
and gathered in Washington and in the West Bank and Gaza. In
Washington, my thanks go to Dr. Ann Mosley Lesch and Pro-
fessor Vivian Bull for their invaluable help, particularly in the areas
of the charitable societies and economic development. In the West
Bank and Gaza, I could not possibly have succeeded in my efforts
without the generous help and hospitality of the administration and
faculty of Birzeit University outside Ramallah. At Birzeit, I am
particularly indebted to Dr. Gabi Baramki, vice president; Dr. Muham-
mad Hallaj, academic dean; Mrs. Samia Khoury, director of financial
affairs; Mrs. Hanna Nasir; Dr. and Mrs. Nafez Nazzal; Dr. and
Mrs. George Jaqaman; and Professor Walter Lehn. At the university's
Center for Research and Documentation I collected useful information
for which I would like to thank Professor Charlie Mahshi, Mrs. Lubna
Abdul Hadi, and Miss Iman al-Masri. During the winter months
when Ramallah's inns were closed, I enjoyed warm hospitality in the
homes of Dr. and Mrs. Wasif Abboushi and Professor Jim Auty, for
which I will always be grateful. I was also greatly assisted by the
university staff, particularly Mr. Nabil Mazbar and Mr. Peter Khoury,
whose friendship I will always cherish.

My interviews in both the West Bank and Gaza were made pro-
ductive by the help of more people than this space can accommodate,
but I would like to mention a few: Professor Hisham Awartani,