The death of the two-state solution

For generations, many international politicians have enthusiastically supported the two-state solution to the complex Israel-Palestine dilemma. Many had great hopes to achieve that goal, and billions of dollars have been spent toward its fulfillment. Not only has the concept not succeeded, but such a proposal is now largely inconceivable following the murderous Hamas attack in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. The Palestinian terrorists massacred innocent civilians and took hundreds of hostages for political negotiations.

What was this two-state solution, and why is it likely dead?

A longtime proposal to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would establish two separate states for the two peoples of the region: a state of Israel as a sovereign state for the Jewish people and the state of Palestine as a homeland for the Palestinians.

This solution was first suggested by Lord Peel and the well-known Peel Commission of 1937—some 11 years before the establishment of Israel in 1948. Several United Nations resolutions in 1947 and 1948 proposed partitioning the land, but none was implemented.

The initially suggested borders had to be readjusted and got significantly complicated after the 1967 Six-Day War when several Arab Muslim nations fought and lost dramatically to Israel. One crux of the dilemma has always been the status of Jerusalem, which both Israelis and Palestinians claim as their capital. The dominant proposal largely advances that Jerusalem would be shared between both states or have a separate international status.

Significant hope emerged during the Oslo Accords negotiations in the 1990s. But after huge progress was made to set a framework for a solution, Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat walked away and declined to accept the deal. While the Oslo Accords laid the groundwork for establishing a Palestinian state by 1999, the refusal of Arafat—and other Palestinian leaders—indicated the challenges in achieving a lasting peace agreement in such a prolonged and vexed conflict. Many leaders—including Arab Muslims—saw Arafat’s refusal as one of the most disappointing episodes in the conflict, as it resulted in the greatest lost opportunity for a solution.

While the two-state solution remains a widely supported model, it has gradually become more unlikely due to ongoing disputes, violence, and political obstacles.

We can see that many on both sides find the two-state solution impractical and impossible to accomplish. This conclusion became absolutely clear after Hamas launched its brutal attack against Israel in October of last year.

On the one hand, Hamas controls the Palestinian disposition. While the Palestine Liberation Organization is theoretically the official government of the Palestinians and has been willing—at least on paper—to consider a two-state solution, it has grown weaker and weaker, giving way for Hamas to become more powerful and influential. Hamas is now largely the leading voice in Palestinian affairs, controlling the lives of the vast majority of Palestinians inside and outside of Gaza. Just consider how its terrorists are now the negotiators with the international community on Palestinian affairs. For Hamas, Israel must be annihilated and no two-state solution is on the table. These are the rejectionists on the Palestinian side.

On the Israeli side, any two-state solution has become almost untenable. While the majority of Israelis had largely accepted the idea for many years, now they are uncertain of its feasibility. If many Israelis were willing to live side by side with Palestinians in past generations, Oct. 7 changed everything.

To understand the effects of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, think of the terrifying shock and utter uncertainties experienced by Americans after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. In speaking with many Israelis, their sheer terror and concerns are crystal clear. Because Israel is a relatively small country, it has now become the reality that many families know someone who knows someone who was massacred or kidnapped by the Hamas terrorists last year.

Consequently, for a growing number of Israelis, there is a need for a new approach toward the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, with the two-state solution becoming obsolete. Israelis want a buffer area around Israel to prevent future terrorist attacks. A growing number of Israelis are openly calling to transfer Palestinians from Gaza to Egypt and from the West Bank to the other side of the Jordan River, meaning to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

Thus, for many Palestinians and Israelis, the two-state solution is dead.

Hamas successfully gave a possible solution a death sentence, thus jeopardizing the lives of millions in a chaotic region. If a two-state solution was theoretically possible in past generations, it is now close to impossible.