{"id":282,"date":"2022-10-08T21:11:25","date_gmt":"2022-10-08T21:11:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ulib.csuohio.edu\/religionsofmiddleeast1\/?post_type=chapter&p=282"},"modified":"2022-11-04T01:51:21","modified_gmt":"2022-11-04T01:51:21","slug":"is-the-two-state-solution-dead","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.ulib.csuohio.edu\/religionsofmiddleeast1\/chapter\/is-the-two-state-solution-dead\/","title":{"rendered":"Part 3. Is the Two State Solution Dead? Israeli-Palestinian Conflict in the 21st Century"},"content":{"raw":"The Second Intifada<\/strong><\/span>\r\n\r\nThe failure of Camp David II, coupled with increasing\u00a0restrictions upon Palestinians and growing poverty in\u00a0the Occupied Territories, led to an inevitable\u00a0outbreak of further hostilities between Israelis and\u00a0Palestinians.\u00a0 The Intifada broke out in response to a visit to the\u00a0Temple Mount by Ariel Sharon, accompanied by\u00a0almost a thousand Israeli riot police.\u00a0 Palestinians, along with much of the\u00a0international community, hold Sharon responsible for\u00a0the 1982 Sabra and\u00a0Shatila\u00a0massacre in Beirut.\r\n\r\nThe second Intifada dragged on for several years,\u00a0featuring continued conflicts between Palestinians\u00a0and Israeli forces.\u00a0 Between 2000-2008 over 1,000\u00a0Israelis and close to 4800 Palestinians were killed in\u00a0inter-communal violence.\u00a0 The end date of the Intifada is disputed.\u00a0 Some tie it\u00a0to the death of Yasser Arafat (Nov 2004), others to\u00a0Israel\u2019s unilateral disengagement from the Gaza Strip\u00a0(completed Aug 2005), while still others point to the\u00a0Sharm\u00a0el-Sheikh summit of Feb 2005.\r\n\r\nAriel Sharon and Israeli Unilateralism<\/strong><\/span>\r\n\r\nAs the second Intifada continued on,\u00a0Sharon was elected prime minister of Israel\u00a0in March 2001, after promising to increase\u00a0Israeli security from Palestinian attacks.\u00a0 Sharon, a longtime member of Likud and\u00a0proponent of constructing Jewish\u00a0settlements in the West Bank, argued that\u00a0the Palestinians did not really desire\u00a0peace, and that it was up to Israel to\u00a0unilaterally establish a settlement.\r\n\r\nIn 2003, Sharon supported the \u201cRoad Map for\u00a0Peace,\u201d championed by U.S. president George W.\u00a0Bush along with the European Union and Russia.\u00a0 He\u00a0announced that he would support the future\u00a0creation of a Palestinian state.\u00a0 Sharon decided to unilaterally disengage from the\u00a0Gaza Strip, announcing his policy in 2003, obtaining\u00a0Knesset approval in February 2005 and\u00a0implementing the withdrawal in August of that year.\u00a0\u00a0He later split with the Likud party (in Nov\u00a02005) and formed his own new party,\u00a0Kadima, after Likud members failed to\u00a0support his plan of unilateral\u00a0disengagement from Gaza.\r\n\r\nHardline Jewish settlers opposed the withdrawal from Gaza, not\u00a0wanting to give up any land under Israeli control,\u00a0but Sharon held firm.\u00a0 Compensation plans were\u00a0offered to Jewish settlers who were forced to\u00a0relocate, and all Jewish settlements in the Gaza\u00a0strip were closed, with some settlers having to be\u00a0removed by force.\u00a0 Following the completion of Israeli withdrawal,\u00a0Palestinians took full control of the Gaza Strip in\u00a0September 2005.\r\n\r\nAnother project initiated by Sharon was the separation fence.\u00a0 The idea of a separation wall, cutting off Palestinian\u00a0populations in the West Bank from Israel proper, had been\u00a0proposed by earlier Israeli governments, but was first\u00a0implemented by Ariel Sharon\u2019s government in 2002. Twenty\u00a0years later, the majority of the wall has now been\u00a0completed.\u00a0 The idea was presented to Israelis as the only way to secure\u00a0Israeli citizens from future terrorist attacks.\u00a0 In order to safeguard Israeli settlements in the West Bank,\u00a0the fence has followed a line that moves significantly into\u00a0the West Bank, confiscating Palestinian territory and\u00a0earning criticism by many outside observers.\u00a0 A United\u00a0Nations resolution to sanction Israel for illegal construction\u00a0of this wall was vetoed by the United States in 2003.\r\n\r\nSharon\u2019s term in office ended following\u00a0two strokes that incapacitated him and\u00a0later sent him into a coma in December\u00a02005 and January 2006.\u00a0 He died in the\u00a0hospital in January 2014.\r\n\r\nHamas-Fatah Civil War and Palestinian Political Stalemate<\/strong><\/span>\r\n\r\nIn a result that surprised many outsiders, Hamas won\u00a0the Palestinian legislative election of January 2006.\u00a0\u00a0The United States and Israel both declared this\u00a0election to be illegitimate and refused to recognize a\u00a0Hamas run government.\u00a0 Feeling that it was not receiving the agreed upon\u00a0power, Hamas forcibly took control of Gaza in June\u00a02007.\u00a0 Sporadic fighting took place between Hamas and\u00a0Fatah, with the upshot being that Fatah controls the\u00a0Palestinian government in the West Bank, whereas\u00a0Hamas rules the Palestinians in Gaza.\r\n\r\nDeclared to be a terrorist organization, the Hamas\u00a0government has faced international blockades, led by\u00a0Israel, and resulting in severe hardship for Palestinians\u00a0living in Gaza.\u00a0\u00a0Hamas has repeatedly fired rockets into Israel from\u00a0Gaza, resulting in wars between Hamas and Israel in\u00a02008, 2012 and 2014.\u00a0 There were also clashes in May 2019, April\/May 2021, and August 2022.\u00a0 Israel has invaded and bombed\u00a0Hamas, killing many civilians but failing to completely\u00a0eliminate Hamas\u2019s ability to launch rockets into Israel.\u00a0 Israel also blockades ships from approaching Gaza in the Mediterranean, in the name of self defense.\u00a0 It cooperates with Egypt to cut off Palestinian access to the Sinai peninsula.\r\n\r\nMost Palestinians are not satisfied with the status quo, which leaves them mostly imprisoned within their territories, in poverty and with little political freedom.\u00a0 Demonstrations in 2018, when thousands of unarmed Palestinians approached the Gaza-Israeli border in a \u201cGreat March of Return\u201d were met with violence from the IDF.\u00a0 Hundreds of Palestinians died and thousands were injured.\u00a0 The chart below shows numbers of Palestinians killed at different spots.<\/strong>\r\n\r\nAfter years of blockade by land, sea and air, Gaza is dealing with a decimated infrastructure, political repression, high unemployment, stifled economic growth, and a looming humanitarian disaster.\u00a0 Israel blames the crisis on Hamas, which it accuses of spending its money on arms and attacks on Israel rather than providing for the physical needs of Gaza\u2019s population.\u00a0 The Palestinian Authority has not cooperated with Hamas, at times refusing to pay Gaza\u2019s electrical bill.\r\n\r\nPalestinian conditions are somewhat better in the West Bank, but there is still little freedom of movement between checkpoints and the presence of Israel\u2019s military police, as well as the continued growth of Israeli settlements throughout the territory.\r\n\r\nNetanyahu in Charge<\/strong><\/span>\r\n\r\nIn the election of 2009, Benjamin Netanyahu was reinstated as prime minister and remains in charge to this day.\u00a0 During his second term in office, Israeli unilateralism and settlement building continued unabated, multiple wars were fought with Hamas, and the Gaza blockade was maintained, although the Israeli security fence project bogged down with 62% completed.\u00a0 Netanyahu maintained harsh rhetoric and an aggressive posture towards Israel\u2019s enemies, bottling up Hamas in Gaza and opposing the nuclear talks and treaty with Iran.\u00a0 No significant peace talks have taken place with the Palestinians since the breakdown of the Oslo process.\r\n\r\nIn early 2017, it became general knowledge that the Israeli police are conducting a criminal investigation of Netanyahu for crimes such as fraud, breach of trust and bribery.\u00a0 Though no charges have been filed, the investigation was a constant threat to bring down his government.\u00a0 However, despite criticisms of Netanyahu, none of the other political parties was able to unseat him and the Israeli government was stalemated for over two years until a coalition government finally unseated him in June 2021.\u00a0 Now in opposition, Netanyahu has vowed another political comeback.\r\n\r\nIs the Two State Solution Dead?<\/span><\/strong>\r\n\r\nFor over four decades, Israeli governments have continued to build settlements in the West Bank, territory that the United Nations has declared should be reserved for a Palestinian state.\u00a0 Though the Palestinian Authority oversees some self-governing enclaves in the West Bank, in reality, Israel exercises control over all of Palestine, even over the Gaza Strip, which Sharon pulled Israeli troops from in 2005.\u00a0 As mentioned above, a naval blockade has been in place off the Gaza coast since 2007, severely restricting who can enter and leave the territory.\u00a0 Similar fortifications on the borders with Israel and Egypt have turned Gaza into what some observers refer to as \u201cthe world\u2019s largest outdoor prison camp.\u201d\u00a0 Meanwhile, the security fence has significantly reduced terrorist violence in Israel, so that many Israelis no longer view the ongoing conflict has a high priority to resolve.\r\n\r\nThe articles linked below ask the question about whether the Two State Solution is now dead and, if so, what will be the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?\u00a0 The first article, published by the United States Institute of Peace addresses the \"danger of 'no-solution messaging.'\"\u00a0 The second article, by\u00a0Foreign Affairs<\/em>, polls a number of Middle East policy experts on the question of whether a two-state solution is still viable.\u00a0 You can view the results of their poll, as well as short statements by the experts polled, in the article.\u00a0 The third article, from\u00a0Jewish Insider<\/em>, presents both Israeli and Palestinian views on the question.\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/www.usip.org\/publications\/2022\/02\/israeli-palestinian-conflict-danger-no-solution-messaging<\/a>\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/www.foreignaffairs.com\/ask-the-experts\/2021-08-24\/two-state-solution-still-viable<\/a>\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/jewishinsider.com\/2022\/07\/is-a-two-state-solution-viable-today\/<\/a>","rendered":"

The Second Intifada<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The failure of Camp David II, coupled with increasing\u00a0restrictions upon Palestinians and growing poverty in\u00a0the Occupied Territories, led to an inevitable\u00a0outbreak of further hostilities between Israelis and\u00a0Palestinians.\u00a0 The Intifada broke out in response to a visit to the\u00a0Temple Mount by Ariel Sharon, accompanied by\u00a0almost a thousand Israeli riot police.\u00a0 Palestinians, along with much of the\u00a0international community, hold Sharon responsible for\u00a0the 1982 Sabra and\u00a0Shatila\u00a0massacre in Beirut.<\/p>\n

The second Intifada dragged on for several years,\u00a0featuring continued conflicts between Palestinians\u00a0and Israeli forces.\u00a0 Between 2000-2008 over 1,000\u00a0Israelis and close to 4800 Palestinians were killed in\u00a0inter-communal violence.\u00a0 The end date of the Intifada is disputed.\u00a0 Some tie it\u00a0to the death of Yasser Arafat (Nov 2004), others to\u00a0Israel\u2019s unilateral disengagement from the Gaza Strip\u00a0(completed Aug 2005), while still others point to the\u00a0Sharm\u00a0el-Sheikh summit of Feb 2005.<\/p>\n

Ariel Sharon and Israeli Unilateralism<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

As the second Intifada continued on,\u00a0Sharon was elected prime minister of Israel\u00a0in March 2001, after promising to increase\u00a0Israeli security from Palestinian attacks.\u00a0 Sharon, a longtime member of Likud and\u00a0proponent of constructing Jewish\u00a0settlements in the West Bank, argued that\u00a0the Palestinians did not really desire\u00a0peace, and that it was up to Israel to\u00a0unilaterally establish a settlement.<\/p>\n

In 2003, Sharon supported the \u201cRoad Map for\u00a0Peace,\u201d championed by U.S. president George W.\u00a0Bush along with the European Union and Russia.\u00a0 He\u00a0announced that he would support the future\u00a0creation of a Palestinian state.\u00a0 Sharon decided to unilaterally disengage from the\u00a0Gaza Strip, announcing his policy in 2003, obtaining\u00a0Knesset approval in February 2005 and\u00a0implementing the withdrawal in August of that year.\u00a0\u00a0He later split with the Likud party (in Nov\u00a02005) and formed his own new party,\u00a0Kadima, after Likud members failed to\u00a0support his plan of unilateral\u00a0disengagement from Gaza.<\/p>\n

Hardline Jewish settlers opposed the withdrawal from Gaza, not\u00a0wanting to give up any land under Israeli control,\u00a0but Sharon held firm.\u00a0 Compensation plans were\u00a0offered to Jewish settlers who were forced to\u00a0relocate, and all Jewish settlements in the Gaza\u00a0strip were closed, with some settlers having to be\u00a0removed by force.\u00a0 Following the completion of Israeli withdrawal,\u00a0Palestinians took full control of the Gaza Strip in\u00a0September 2005.<\/p>\n

Another project initiated by Sharon was the separation fence.\u00a0 The idea of a separation wall, cutting off Palestinian\u00a0populations in the West Bank from Israel proper, had been\u00a0proposed by earlier Israeli governments, but was first\u00a0implemented by Ariel Sharon\u2019s government in 2002. Twenty\u00a0years later, the majority of the wall has now been\u00a0completed.\u00a0 The idea was presented to Israelis as the only way to secure\u00a0Israeli citizens from future terrorist attacks.\u00a0 In order to safeguard Israeli settlements in the West Bank,\u00a0the fence has followed a line that moves significantly into\u00a0the West Bank, confiscating Palestinian territory and\u00a0earning criticism by many outside observers.\u00a0 A United\u00a0Nations resolution to sanction Israel for illegal construction\u00a0of this wall was vetoed by the United States in 2003.<\/p>\n

Sharon\u2019s term in office ended following\u00a0two strokes that incapacitated him and\u00a0later sent him into a coma in December\u00a02005 and January 2006.\u00a0 He died in the\u00a0hospital in January 2014.<\/p>\n

Hamas-Fatah Civil War and Palestinian Political Stalemate<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In a result that surprised many outsiders, Hamas won\u00a0the Palestinian legislative election of January 2006.\u00a0\u00a0The United States and Israel both declared this\u00a0election to be illegitimate and refused to recognize a\u00a0Hamas run government.\u00a0 Feeling that it was not receiving the agreed upon\u00a0power, Hamas forcibly took control of Gaza in June\u00a02007.\u00a0 Sporadic fighting took place between Hamas and\u00a0Fatah, with the upshot being that Fatah controls the\u00a0Palestinian government in the West Bank, whereas\u00a0Hamas rules the Palestinians in Gaza.<\/p>\n

Declared to be a terrorist organization, the Hamas\u00a0government has faced international blockades, led by\u00a0Israel, and resulting in severe hardship for Palestinians\u00a0living in Gaza.\u00a0\u00a0Hamas has repeatedly fired rockets into Israel from\u00a0Gaza, resulting in wars between Hamas and Israel in\u00a02008, 2012 and 2014.\u00a0 There were also clashes in May 2019, April\/May 2021, and August 2022.\u00a0 Israel has invaded and bombed\u00a0Hamas, killing many civilians but failing to completely\u00a0eliminate Hamas\u2019s ability to launch rockets into Israel.\u00a0 Israel also blockades ships from approaching Gaza in the Mediterranean, in the name of self defense.\u00a0 It cooperates with Egypt to cut off Palestinian access to the Sinai peninsula.<\/p>\n

Most Palestinians are not satisfied with the status quo, which leaves them mostly imprisoned within their territories, in poverty and with little political freedom.\u00a0 Demonstrations in 2018, when thousands of unarmed Palestinians approached the Gaza-Israeli border in a \u201cGreat March of Return\u201d were met with violence from the IDF.\u00a0 Hundreds of Palestinians died and thousands were injured.\u00a0 The chart below shows numbers of Palestinians killed at different spots.<\/strong><\/p>\n

After years of blockade by land, sea and air, Gaza is dealing with a decimated infrastructure, political repression, high unemployment, stifled economic growth, and a looming humanitarian disaster.\u00a0 Israel blames the crisis on Hamas, which it accuses of spending its money on arms and attacks on Israel rather than providing for the physical needs of Gaza\u2019s population.\u00a0 The Palestinian Authority has not cooperated with Hamas, at times refusing to pay Gaza\u2019s electrical bill.<\/p>\n

Palestinian conditions are somewhat better in the West Bank, but there is still little freedom of movement between checkpoints and the presence of Israel\u2019s military police, as well as the continued growth of Israeli settlements throughout the territory.<\/p>\n

Netanyahu in Charge<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In the election of 2009, Benjamin Netanyahu was reinstated as prime minister and remains in charge to this day.\u00a0 During his second term in office, Israeli unilateralism and settlement building continued unabated, multiple wars were fought with Hamas, and the Gaza blockade was maintained, although the Israeli security fence project bogged down with 62% completed.\u00a0 Netanyahu maintained harsh rhetoric and an aggressive posture towards Israel\u2019s enemies, bottling up Hamas in Gaza and opposing the nuclear talks and treaty with Iran.\u00a0 No significant peace talks have taken place with the Palestinians since the breakdown of the Oslo process.<\/p>\n

In early 2017, it became general knowledge that the Israeli police are conducting a criminal investigation of Netanyahu for crimes such as fraud, breach of trust and bribery.\u00a0 Though no charges have been filed, the investigation was a constant threat to bring down his government.\u00a0 However, despite criticisms of Netanyahu, none of the other political parties was able to unseat him and the Israeli government was stalemated for over two years until a coalition government finally unseated him in June 2021.\u00a0 Now in opposition, Netanyahu has vowed another political comeback.<\/p>\n

Is the Two State Solution Dead?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

For over four decades, Israeli governments have continued to build settlements in the West Bank, territory that the United Nations has declared should be reserved for a Palestinian state.\u00a0 Though the Palestinian Authority oversees some self-governing enclaves in the West Bank, in reality, Israel exercises control over all of Palestine, even over the Gaza Strip, which Sharon pulled Israeli troops from in 2005.\u00a0 As mentioned above, a naval blockade has been in place off the Gaza coast since 2007, severely restricting who can enter and leave the territory.\u00a0 Similar fortifications on the borders with Israel and Egypt have turned Gaza into what some observers refer to as \u201cthe world\u2019s largest outdoor prison camp.\u201d\u00a0 Meanwhile, the security fence has significantly reduced terrorist violence in Israel, so that many Israelis no longer view the ongoing conflict has a high priority to resolve.<\/p>\n

The articles linked below ask the question about whether the Two State Solution is now dead and, if so, what will be the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?\u00a0 The first article, published by the United States Institute of Peace addresses the “danger of ‘no-solution messaging.'”\u00a0 The second article, by\u00a0Foreign Affairs<\/em>, polls a number of Middle East policy experts on the question of whether a two-state solution is still viable.\u00a0 You can view the results of their poll, as well as short statements by the experts polled, in the article.\u00a0 The third article, from\u00a0Jewish Insider<\/em>, presents both Israeli and Palestinian views on the question.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.usip.org\/publications\/2022\/02\/israeli-palestinian-conflict-danger-no-solution-messaging<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.foreignaffairs.com\/ask-the-experts\/2021-08-24\/two-state-solution-still-viable<\/a><\/p>\n

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