One of the challenges to the establishment of the conditions of peace in the Middle East is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
This year, the conflict erupted into a horrific war and an overreaction on the part of Israel. Let’s dare talk about what might come out of this war – peace. It must be said that peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians will be challenging, given the history of the two peoples. However, writers Omar M. Dajani and Limor Yehuda provide us with a path in their story in Foreign Affairs Sept. 19, “A Two-State Solution That Can Work: the Case for an Israeli-Palestinian Confederation.”
Presidential candidate Kamala Harris stressed her commitment to a two-state solution in saying: “The only path that ensures Israel remains a secure Jewish and democratic state, and one that ensures Palestinians can finally realize the freedom, security, and prosperity that they rightly deserve.” Across the world, leaders continue to pledge support for a two-state solution, arguing that it provides a way to end the war and eventually rebuild Gaza. In a long-awaited cease-fire resolution passed in June, the UN Security Council again committed itself to “the vision of the two-state solution where two democratic States, Israel and Palestine, live side by side in peace within secure and recognized borders.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged opposition to a two-state solution. Even his opponents are weary of the idea, knowing it isn’t popular with the Israeli public. Israel does not want to give up control over the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and it is not willing to relocate hundreds of thousands of settlers or erect a physical border dividing Jerusalem.
The infeasibility of the familiar two-state plan has led some to push for a one-state solution. Under these proposals, Palestinians and Israeli Jews would be equal citizens in a state governed by a single, democratically elected government. This is unlikely to happen, as stated by Dajani and Yehuda. Such a solution may be a long-term goal, and it remains a pie-in-the-sky dream because neither Israeli Jews nor Palestinians are willing to sacrifice their right to national self-determination.
Dajani and Yehuda said of the Israeli-Palestinian issue: “But there is an alternative: an Israeli-Palestinian confederation, built on the principles of equality and partnership. In it, Israelis and Palestinians would each get their own distinct states. They would have clear borders and the right to pass their own laws. But following a transitional period, the border would be open, and both peoples would ultimately have the right to live across all the land between Jordan and the Mediterranean Sea, which both see as their historic homeland. Joint Israeli-Palestinian bodies would govern issues that transcend each state’s boundaries, such as energy and external security. There would be joint judicial institutions to safeguard everyone’s freedoms.”
The confederation would resolve issues on citizenship, nationhood, demography, nationality, and sovereignty and guarantee equality for Israelis and Palestinians, individually and collectively. In addition, it would help both groups cooperate equitably after decades of occupation and conflict. Dajani and Yehuda feel that a two-state confederation would help Israelis and Palestinians achieve national self-determination while providing a just framework for managing their attachments to their shared homeland.
The writers gave a definition of confederalism: “Confederations have existed for centuries: the term refers to an association or union in which two or more sovereign states agree to cede some of their sovereign powers to joint institutions for the purpose of achieving shared goals, such as mutual security or economic integration. The member states in a confederation usually possess independent international personalities. But confederations also often facilitate the free movement of persons and goods within them.”
Confederations have long been used to ease ethnic tensions like the ones that exist in Israel today. For example, the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro facilitated a peaceful transition to Montenegro’s independence in a region otherwise plagued by ethnic war. Switzerland was once a confederation between German-, French- and Italian-speaking cantons. But in its 1848 constitution, it transformed into a more tightly-knit federation. The European Union would also be considered a confederation.
Like the European Union, an Israeli-Palestinian confederation would be composed of distinct states. Palestine would be established alongside Israel, with a recognized international border between them. Each could, under its constitution, have the right to join or not join international organizations and be able to establish its policy on education, foreign affairs, law enforcement, social welfare, and taxation. In Dajani and Yehuda’s model, there would be a regulated but open border between the two states. Eventually, citizens of both would acquire the right to move throughout the entire country, subject to reciprocal and coordinated security measures.
Like the European Union, voting rights for national elections would be based on citizenship, whereas those for local elections would be based on residence. For instance, a returning Palestinian refugee who opts to live in Jaffa would vote for the Palestinian National Assembly, not the Knesset, but would be able to vote for the Yafo–Tel Aviv city council. Conversely, an Israeli residing in a (former) settlement such as Ariel would vote in the Knesset, not the Palestinian National Assembly, but could participate in choosing representatives in an integrated Ariel municipal government.
Dajani and Yehuda’s model doesn’t require a mass evacuation of settlers, nor does it undermine Palestinian sovereignty. It allows Jerusalem to be one city, not divided by a barrier. It also does not require Israelis or Palestinians to surrender their attachment to any part of the country; it lowers the stakes of determining where the border between the two states will be.
The two writers rightly stated that such a confederation would be complicated, and a ceasefire would be the first step. As of the writing of this story, Israel is bombing Lebanon, and most hope the conflict doesn’t become a regional war. Everyone who cares about peace must acknowledge that millions of people, both Jews and Palestinians, will continue to live in this area and call it home. Building a confederation in Israel is a must if either faction wants to live a life defined by human rights, peace, and democracy.
Jason Sibert is the Lead Writer of the Peace Economy Project.
From The Progressive Populist, November 1, 2024
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