The One-State Solution: An Alternative Approach to the Israeli–Palestinian Conflict?

Abstract

The Israeli–Palestinian conflict has been one of the most controversial issues in the Middle East since 1948. Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization signed in 1993 the Oslo Peace Accord, which aimed at settling the dispute between Israel and Palestine. This peace accord rested on the two-state solution whereby Palestine and Israel would live side by side in peace. Since then, the two-state solution has been the paradigm for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. However, over the last decade, Israel and the Palestinian Authority have not reached any fruitful agreements through negotiation. Followed by the outbreak of the Al-Aqsa Intifada (2000–2006), the domination of Hamas in Gaza (since 2006), three major strikes on Gaza by Israeli forces (2009, 2012, 2014) and repeated territorial fragmentations of the West Bank, the Israeli–Palestinian conflict has persisted and perhaps, getting even worsen; this development has cast doubt on the two-state solution. Against this backdrop, the one-state solution, which has become a heated academic debate in the West, appears to present an alternative solution. Therefore, this paper aims to analyze the reasons for the emergence of the one-state paradigm as an alternative to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in recent years. What is the idea behind the one-state solution? Who are the academic proponents of this solution? What about this plan? These questions are the subject of dispute. This article will provide an evaluation of the one-state solution.