Israel and Palestine: Is Peace Possible?
by Lauren Strupp
Israel and Palestine have been feuding for years with regards to who possesses the ultimate right to land currently occupied by Israel. There are over four million people living in Palestinian refugee communities throughout the Middle East. These people are facing extreme peril, and are in dire need of economic assistance. They lack jobs and money, and the basic resources for simple survival. Palestinians living in Gaza strongly believe that their current problems will never be solved unless a stable Palestinian state is established. Support for this issue is declining as it seems futile, having not changed in sixty years because neither side is willing to compromise. Since the situation has basically remained the same for quite some time, how are we as people of the world supposed to believe it ever will change?
This question of change is significant because up to this point in time, neither state has been willing to concede. Therefore, Israel and Palestine are at a roadblock. Each contends that they have the same basic human right to live in their homeland. The problem lies in that both claim the same place as their home. Israelis argue that Israel was created as a Jewish state and therefore they cannot concede. As a result of the war in 1948 and the creation of Israel, about 630,000 Jews fled Arab countries and lost their property. Furthermore, there is no precedent in international law that requires a country to send back hostile belligerents, and there does not seem to be any relevant provision in any UN or Hague statute. David Ben-Gurion, the first Israeli Prime Minister, summed up the problem by saying: “We either have a Jewish state without the land of Israel or we have the land of Israel without a Jewish state.” This statement was made in 1948 when the potential for this conflict first came to light. Since the establishment of a Jewish state, Israel and Palestine have been at odds with one another. Compromise does not appear to be a possible solution.
If the Palestinians were granted the right to return to Israeli lands, then the concept of Israel as it exists today would be ruined. The basis for the Palestinian claim lies in the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 194, passed in 1948, which states that "refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbours should be permitted to do so at the earliest practical date.” Article 11 of the resolution specifically calls for the return of refugees to Israel. Palestinians also cite the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as support for their desire to return to Israel.
Due to the incommensurable nature of the Israeli and Palestinian arguments, this disagreement will be ongoing – possibly indefinitely. The widespread impact that this feud has had on so many people makes it ideal that the two sides reach some sort of compromise. However, because it has remained a constant struggle for so many years, it is almost not worth all the attention it has received. Until either side can attempt to compromise, or at least begin by expressing a willingness to do so, nothing will change. Until such a time, perhaps attention would be better suited to focus on solving problems in other areas.
While both sides have valid arguments, for the Palestinians, the right to return is nonnegotiable. They will not accept any solution that does not give them the permission to return to Israel. However, that position may not be the most practical.
Sari Nusseibeh, a former representative of the PLO in Jerusalem and a professor of Islamic Philosophy at the Al-Quds University in that same city, has proposed a potential, yet controversial, solution to this problem that could take effect now. In 2002, he suggested that Palestinian refugees should only be allowed to return to a fully Palestinian state. Former Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat also took the demographic imbalance into account in determining whether the Palestinians should return to what they consider their homeland. The possibility that the Palestinians will even be given the chance to return is far-fetched because Israel will never concede.
With the constant disagreement over what should happen with regard to the return of the Palestinians to what is currently Israeli land, this problem can never truly be solved. Is peace really possible? It is hard to expect a compromise to be reached when it appears as if the Palestinians are holding Israel responsible for the detriment of their culture. Israel is currently planning to erect a wall in the West Bank to block Palestinians from entering the state, as well as to prevent Palestinian suicide bombers from crossing the border and killing more Israelis. This physical barrier exemplifies how the Israelis feel about conceding to the return of Palestinians. If established, the wall will leave the prospect of a separate, two-state solution nearly impossible. It will extend well east of the Green Line, the boundary between Israel and the West Bank established in 1948. Israel is controlling the entire Western Aquifer that supplies 50 percent of the West Bank's water and taking over thousands of acres of the West Bank's richest agricultural land in order to construct this wall. The wall around Jerusalem will bring the city completely under Israeli control.
As of now, the likelihood of peace is slim. Consequently, since nothing has changed and no one is willing to relinquish his or her demands, there exists the notion that this conflict is fruitless. The effort put into resolving it has been in vain because both sides refuse compromise. And until one nation backs down, the state of the world, or at least that region, will remain as it is.
Sources Cited:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/middle_east/2001/israel_and_the_palestinians/default.stm
