Is a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine possible? | Start Here

The Israel-Gaza war has got many people talking again about the need for a two-state solution. It’s often presented as the only option to bring lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians. But what is the two-state solution? Is it actually possible? And why are some people talking about a “one-state solution” instead? #AJStartHere with Sandra Gathmann explains.

Chapters:

01:00 - What is a two-state solution?
02:34 - The Balfour Declaration and its implications
03:05 - The British proposal to partition historic Palestine in 1937
03:30 - The proposed UN partition plan in 1947
04:05 - What happened in the 1948 war
04:40 - The Green Line and the 1967 war
05:55 - How Yasser Arafat recognised Israel in 1988
06:30 - The Oslo Accords and how they didn’t promise a Palestinian state
09:05 - Israeli and Palestinian opposition to the peace process
11:20 - The Second Intifada
12:00 - Attempts to keep the peace process going after Oslo
12:40 - Major obstacles to the peace process - settlements
13:39 - Major obstacles to the peace process - Israeli politics
14:09 - Major obstacles to the peace process - Palestinian politics
16:35 - Why October 7th has got people talking again about the two-state solution.
18:53 - Is all the talking about a two-state solution part of the problem?
19:18 - Why some people argue for a one-state solution

This episode features:

Diana Buttu - Palestinian lawyer & analyst; legal advisor to the PLO negotiating team 2000-2005.

Nathan Brown - Professor of political science, George Washington University

Gideon Levy - Israeli journalist & author

Mouin Rabbani - Co-editor, Jadaliyya

Rami Khouri - Distinguished fellow, American University of Beirut

#Palestine #Israel #Gaza #GazaWar #OccupiedWestBank #OccupiedEastJerusalem #PalestinianState #TwoStateSolution #PalestinianAuthority

Follow Sandra Gathmann on Instagram and X: @SandraGathmann
And let us know in the comments if there’s a topic you find confusing and would like Start Here to cover ⤵️

[aljazeeraenglish]

You can find the full Start Here playlist with all our episodes here 👇

[bretedwards]

In 1948, Jordan took control of the West Bank and Egypt took control of the Gaza Strip, leaving the Palestinians with no land in which to declare a nation (and the Palestinians did not declare any desire to form a state when occupied by these nations). The other Arab countries were more than happy to expand their nations at the expense of an independent Palestine. BTW, except for Jordan no Palestinian refugees have been given citizenship status in other Arab countries (for over 75 years). These actions imply that the other Arab nations have no real loyalty to Palestine and use it as a political ploy only for internal political reasons.

[aljazeeraenglish]

Here are some more Start Here episodes linked to Israel and Palestine ⤵


And you can find the full Start Here playlist with all our episodes here ⤵

[joeanderson]

I have watched this conflict, prayed about it, spoken out, voted for candidates who were for peace, and done everything in my power to make peace in this land happen. I am done. People don't care enough about this conflict to listen to both sides. Netanyahu has used his power for years to take more and more land from the Palestinians. And radical extremists on both sides have done everything in their power to stop every effort from succeeding.
There are people on both sides that want peace. But every plan and agreement is sabotaged by people on both sides who refuse to let peace happen. All the other Arab nations have kept the Palestinians armed, and kept the radical extremists in power, at the expense of the Palestinian civilians. I don't see any of these nations helping Palestinian refugees. Nobody wants them in their country. They are being used as pawns on the stage of international theater. The fact is that nobody in Israel and Palestine are going to have peace because of the determination of those who insist on destroying the other. The United States has armed Israel to protect the Jewish people who live their. But most of us don't want Israel to continue to steal the land. Israel does not recognize the human rights of Palestinians, and Palestinians don't recognize that there are some Jews who want peace. I am so tired of it. There is nothing more to do but let them fight it out. I feel sorry for all of the people in this country who want to live in peace with each other. I don't know what will happen to these people if there is no law to protect the civil rights of every man, woman, and child regardless of their religious beliefs. There must be a government that protects the rights and property of all people. Not a government just for Jewish people, or just for Palestinians. There must be a separation between church and state. People must be protected and represented. Land must not be stolen. People must stop killing each other.

[francescobanco]

The video ignores an important point. While the term “Palestine” is used today to describe what became Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip, at the time of the British Mandate, Palestine also included what is now Jordan. In 1922 Britain detached 78% of Palestine to become the Arab/Palestinian state of Trans-Jordan (now Jordan), and the League of Nations declared that the remaining portion should become a Jewish state (only later did Britain and then the UN decide to further divide the remaining portion into two parts). So it’s not very accurate to state that Israel had 78% of Palestine in 1948. In reality it had 15%.

It also seems a little suspect that the video qualifies the count of 1, 200 killed Israelis after October 7 with, “That’s according to the Israeli authorities” but does not qualify the count of killed Palestinians as being supplied by Gaza's Ministry of Health. Nor does it mention that that number does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. I’m not disputing either number, but it does indicate some level of bias.

[Aleksssssssss]

Hopefully someday Israelis and Palestinians will be able to live in peace and tranquility. Pray for peace

[davidpinkus]

My understanding directly from Dennis Ross, is that Arafat rejected the best deal he was ever going to get. 97% of the green line territory, plus 3% compensating land in Israel, capital in East Jerusalem, etc. Arafat responded with an Intifada. Israel electing right-wingers was a response to this. The electorate had voted for peace-makers until the process failed. For there to be any hope, the Israeli public needs to believe there is a partner for peace; which they don’t. Israel could evacuate many of the settlements; I don’t think that’s the sticking point some believe. It’s the fact, especially after Oct 7th, that the populations don’t trust each other at best, and hate each other at worst. And until there is a functioning government in the West Bank and Gaza, there really isn’t anybody even to talk to.

Honestly the best solution may be for Egypt to administer Gaza and Jordan to administer parts of the West Bank for a generation or two until a generation can be brought up who believes in peaceful co-existence.

[think-about-it-]

This is the most polite but overly elaborate way to say: "A look at this FUBAR map partitioning forcing people who hate each other to live next to each other and then let's act surprised when they can't be peaceful"

[sonosofisms]

There are several important facts left unsaid in this summary. Let’s consider two. Firstly, the British Mandate for Palestine (1920-48) consisted of land on both sides of the Jordan:: west (“Jews allowed”) and east (“Jews excluded”). The eastern half was three times as large, and allegedly of higher quality land for agriculture. Secondly, in 2005 Israel disengaged from Gaza. Within two years HAMAS was in power, and has de facto been the responsible authority there until now. Neither of these two important facts are discussed in the al-Jazeera report.

[dailylearning]

She kept saying there was a war multiple times without stating who started the war. If you declare war on a country and the country fights back and wins, including extra land, the land belongs to them. That is simple to understand. Also, Hamas did not automatically end up controlling Gaza. There was a civil war, and Hamas sent the Abas party/faction out of Gaza with guns. You are so economical with the truth.

[thomassherwood]

Obviously it's completely different, but the Good Friday agreement specifically says that they're not trying to answer the Northern Ireland question, they just want the answer to come politically not violently

[kymmillbank]

So, who started these wars? What happened to start them? What is the history in Gaza? Was there a war between Hamas and the PLA? What happened during that? You missed a lot out.

[laurat]

How come there's no mention of when Israel removed all settlers from Gaza in 2005? That was just before the Gazans voted in Hamas, who is bent on Israel's destruction, why is none of this mentioned?

[Marssz]

Haven't the political entities of the PA and hamass repeatedly rejected, for whatever reasons, proposed two-state solutions? The only rational choice is peaceful coexistence but that option seems to be consistently rejected by the Palestinian authorities. What to do?

[emil]

3:52 that's the key to all the conflict.
You cant start a war lose and cry for the results, all the arad nations around couldn't defeat Israel that at that time were poor and with small population that just survive the holocaust.
There is price for mistakes.

[ishaan]

If al jazeera is making a documentary on historic census of who lived on the land, they should make a similar one for kashmir too

[aljazeeraenglish]

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From Sandra & the Start Here team

[CamiloSanchez]

I feel terrible for the state of Israel but at this juncture, we must accept their actions are morally questionable. The moment that Israel and its people supported the creation of settlements, Israel crossed a line. Understandably they probably followed the path of the US in its westward expansion, but history is not only on the books. History will not be kind to Israel at this point. This does not legitimize the actions of October 2023, but we must acknowledge that for every action, there is a reaction. Thus, the US and the world must rethink its support to Israel unless its government reconsiders a serious path where Palestinians are returned land or incorporated with the same rights of an Israel citizen.

[ghoraxe]

How about a 3 state solution... The 3rd is a in-between buffer zone where both can enter and cooperate .. this would provide a bigger barrier too

[zoltankaparthy]

This was a two state solution at one time. But the Arab states did not like it and invaded Israel. And they kept doing this. The Arab states do not seem to want a two state solution. The seem to want to have a one state solution: no Israel. It has been this for 75 years now. When will the Arab states stop blaming Israel and start to look at their end of the deal?