I wonder why international leaders make decisions that are clearly against their own interests. There have been two recent examples. The first was the release by Israel of another tranche of terrorists who are free to rejuvenate and refresh themselves and return to the cause of murdering Israeli citizens. This was done in the naive belief that it would be received with the same goodwill as it was granted and that, in return for the gesture, the Palestinian side would turn their swords into ploughshares and become real partners in the search for peace.