08

Once again the Gaza war thread was the most active. But, with just over 300 new posts, the thread barely held on to the position. The second most active thread was related. Titled, "Please share your ideas for SOLUTIONS to the middle east crisis", the thread was similarly posted in the "Political Discussion" forum. The original poster asks others about their ideas for a solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Rather than slog through this 17 page thread, I'll address questions that I saw on the first page. The most commonly stated solution to the conflict is the "Two-State Solution" in which a Palestinian state consisting of Gaza and parts of the West Bank coexists with Israel. This solution is the basis of the original United Nations resolution that led to the creation of Israel, was reinforced in UN Resolutions 338 and 242, and was the foundation of the Oslo Accords. The United States officially supports this arrangement and President Joe Biden has restated that position several times in recent days. However, despite the wide-spread support internationally, the idea faces significant hurdles and, under current circumstances, can't reasonably be considered a serious proposition. The first hurdle to a two-state solution is the fact that Israel is a politically divided country. The political spectrum runs from those who would happily accomodate a Palestinian state in the majority of Gaza and the West Bank to those who don't want to give up an inch of the West Bank and would even like to take Gaza back. The Israeli settler movement which has been steadily seizing more and more territory in the West Bank is enacting a fait accompli and leaving less land for a Palestinian state every day. Israeli proposals for a Palestinian state have only allowed for a disjointed, non-contiguous territory that would not be viable. Moreover, Israel expects to maintain significant restrictions and important influence and control over such a country. This is obviously unacceptable to Palestinians. Under the status quo, Israel — which likes to advertise itself as the only democracy in the Middle East — faces a dilemma. It can be a Jewish state, which requires it to rule undemocratically over the Palestinians, or it can be a democracy and provide full rights to those in the occupied territories. But, given the number of Palestinians, in that scenario the country would no longer remain as a Jewish state. As a result, Israelis have a host of solutions that involve annexing territory while either outright expelling Palestinians or leaving them powerless. None are acceptable to the Palestinians. A few Israelis and an increasing number of Palestinians favor a "one-state" solution in which Israelis and Palestinians share a democratic country in which both communities have equal rights. This maintains Israel's democracy while sacrificing its Jewish identity. This is the solution supported by the "Free Palestine from the River to the Sea" slogan that has been popular at pro-Palestinian demonstrations. This idea, of course, also has little chance of being implemented in the foreseeable future. In the absence of progress toward a resolution, Palestinians live under harsh Israeli oppression and watch more and more of their land disappear under settler feet every day. This results in a unstable and periodically violent situation. This leaves, at best, incomplete half-measures that might relieve the worst of the Palestinian suffering and reduce violence. Such steps would include crackdowns on settlers including the removal of some settlements, political reform of the Palestinian National Authority, and increased freedoms for Palestinian residents.