What Now?

by Robert Wolfe (April 2016)

In recent weeks I have seen a number of articles, all of which contend that now that everyone sees that there is no chance of a two state solution at present, the time has come for a discussion of alternative ways of resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict. And no doubt this is true, but I find it significant that the authors of these articles do not themselves put forward any alternatives.

It seems clear to me that the reason for their reticence on this score is the same as the reason for the general disillusionment with the two state solution, namely the wave of stabbings, shootings, car rammings and stone throwings that has been unleashed against Israelis by the Palestinian leadership during the past six months. The only realistic alternative to a two state solution is a one state solution, but a one state solution implies at least some possibility of Jews and Muslims living together in peace. What has been happening during the past six months seems to rule out this possibility, hence the reluctance of critics of the two state mirage to put forward an alternative of their own.

The thing is, although most Palestinians may not want peace with Israel, they most definitely need it. Very little of the billions of dollars in foreign aid that sustains the Palestinian leadership trickles down to the average Palestinian. What the Palestinians need is jobs, but few investors can be found to sink their money into an environment as violent and chaotic as the Palestinian. Only an accommodation with Israel could create the necessary conditions for Palestinian economic development, but the Palestinian leadership is dead set against even the slightest steps in this direction. And through its control of the Palestinian media and educational system, it has succeeded in convincing most Palestinians that the destruction of Israel is the solution to all their problems.

The great advantage of a one state solution over a two state solution is that it is in any case inherent in the situation. Even now the Palestinians get their electricity from Israel and employ a monetary system based on the Israeli shekel. A Palestinian state, even if one could somehow come into being without destroying Israel, would have little basis for an independent economy of its own. Cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians is the reasonable, natural way of developing the rocky soil and limited resources of Judea and Samaria. Such cooperation would much more easily be achieved under the aegis of a one state solution. Needless to say, the name of that state would be Israel.

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Robert Wolfe is a professional historian and scholar with 40 years experience teaching history on the college level in the United States. He made aliyah to Israel in 2001 and lives in Netanya with his wife.

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