Six Options for Durable Peace in the Middle East

While trying to resolve serious conflicts, there are two overwhelming considerations of present times we should not forget and cannot afford to forget.

First, the consideration of achieving peace and particularly durable peace is the most important consideration and objective given the various serious problems including the increasing destructiveness of weapons and the possibilities of conflict escalating and spreading.  

Secondly, there is nothing like permanent enmity and hostility. The possibilities of friendship between two sides of people who have been very hostile earlier always exist. Without a firm faith in such a conviction, the peace movement and peace activists cannot really achieve anything big and durable.

This perspective should be at the back of our mind while exploring solutions for middle-east or any other conflicts.

At present the biggest priority is a ceasefire in Gaza to be followed by durable peace, but from a longer term perspective theoretically six options are available.

Firstly, what the Israeli hardliners today want is that the entire area of present day Israel plus Gaza and West Bank should constitute a Greater Israel, something which they can achieve by more or less driving out Palestinians from Gaza and West Bank. From the perspective of justice this should be rejected and at practical level also, the Palestinians will never accept this.

The second option is the reverse of this. This is favored by Palestinian hardliners and their supporters. According to this option the present area of Israel plus Gaza and West Bank should belong to the Palestinians to constitute their Palestine state or Greater Palestine. This view is reflected in some slogans although not very openly or clearly. This is sought to be justified by going back to the period before 1948. However this also is not based on justice as this raises the question of where the people of Israel and more particularly where the Jew majority of Israel will go. Moreover Israel and its supporters will never accept this at the practical level. Hence this too should be rejected.

The third option is that there should be only one country, but a genuine democracy with completely equal rights for all people, whether Jews or Muslims or anyone else. There is equal justice for all in this concept but this is unlikely to work at the practical level just now, or be acceptable to the leadership of both sides.

All the three concepts mentioned above are one state solutions. Now let us consider three concepts based on two state solutions.

The fourth version is that the   two state solution gets pushed but only in a highly watered-down form, the kind of weak version of statehood that the USA can possibly convince Israel to accept as a part of its efforts to reach an agreement involving close relationship of Israel, Saudi Arabia and the USA.  The Palestinians will not be happy about it, and even if this takes place the two sides or the states will continue to be hostile with each other as neither is happy and satisfied and old differences and hostilities have not gone away.

The fifth option is that of robust and proper statehood for Palestine. This is unlikely to be accepted by Israel as things stand today but even if this happens somehow, hostilities are likely to break out sooner or later as Israel will basically be unhappy with this and nothing would have been done to take away the old hostilities and suspicions.

The sixth option is in the form of strong, well-planned and thought-out, continuing efforts being made to reduce hostilities and improve friendship among the people of Israel and Palestinians and then a proper and fair two-state solution is implemented in these conditions. In other words, this option is of proper, fair two state solution plus continuing efforts being made for improving people to people friendship as well as removing or reducing various kinds of hostilities and suspicions.

Bharat Dogra is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include Planet in Peril, Earth without Borders, A Day in 2071 and Man over Machine.