In 2008, we were inches from peace in the Middle East. I believe it’s still within our grasp | Gordon Brown

It may seem impossible to seek a deal amid war. But the consequences of not doing so are too painful to contemplate

With all hope currently buried beneath the rubble of Gaza and Israel's abandoned kibbutzim, it is hard not to despair about the prospects of an Israeli-Palestinian peace. The hostages have to be returned immediately and the killing of civilians has to stop, yet a ceasefire alone will not solve the fundamental challenge of achieving an enduring settlement, and while it is hard to make a plan amid such trauma, it is impossible to end years of violence without one.

And in reality, a blueprint does exist for an alternative to this deadly cycle of destruction and retribution. The attempts in the Oslo process (whose five-year timetable for a two-state solution did not materialise), the failed Clinton-Arafat-Barak Camp David talks and the doomed Obama 2013-14 initiatives are well documented. Less well known is the 2007-08 peace plan. After talking to some of its leading proponents in the past few days, I believe this will, sooner or later, offer anew the best starting point for delivering a durable peace.