Thoughts on Achieving a Lasting and
Honorable Peace in the Middle East
By Gaffar Yakın, M.D., Jozef Bicerano, Ph.D., and Holly Bicerano
Copyright 2013 Gaffar Yakın, Jozef Bicerano, and Holly Bicerano
12 December 2013
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Synopsis
Current Situation and the Irony/Tragedy of the Middle East
History/Background of Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Today’s Realities
What Is Impossible?
Fundamental Principles and Main Issues in Reaching an Israeli-Palestinian Peace Agreement and Peaceful Coexistence in the Middle East
Thoughts on a Political Solution
Thoughts on a Special Political Status for Jerusalem
Thoughts on Solving Economic, Social, and Security Issues
Thoughts on Fighting Prejudice
Scenarios for the Future
About the Authors
Synopsis
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been raging for a century. Its antagonists are two Semitic peoples, Jews and Arabs, each among the ancient inhabitants of the Middle East tracing their roots to the Biblical prophet Abraham. If Israel and the Palestinians could end their conflict, both peoples would be able to improve their economic and political ties with other nations, significantly relaxing tensions both in the Middle East and in the whole world.
The Jewish people have suffered from more oppression and discrimination than any other people, including two major forced exiles, many massacres, and a genocide. Remarkably, and uniquely among the peoples of the world, they have been able to maintain a strong sense of national identity despite all this suffering.
As multinational empires started to crumble under nationalistic pressures late in the 19th century, many Jews who suffered oppression in the diaspora started to migrate to the Middle East. Conflicting nationalistic aspirations created ethnic and sectarian divisions and caused hostilities that have been deepening since then in the Middle East. After World War II, and with the help and support of the Western powers which felt a deep sense of guilt about the Holocaust, the State of Israel was established in 1948.
While all parties to this conflict have suffered, the Palestinian people have become its biggest victims. The causes for their victimization include not only the Israeli-Palestinian conflict itself but also the callous policies of many Arab governments against Palestinian refugees in their territories. The Palestinian territories face several challenges, including limited resources, construction restrictions, and travel restrictions. The continuation of this conflict will only lead to more losses for Palestinians.
Jewish Israeli citizens who have achieved their historical dreams of having their own state in their ancestral homeland are also uncomfortable. Israel is surrounded by enemies and is in a constant state of conflict and fight for survival. Israelis worry about the longevity of their state. They face serious national security and personal safety challenges ranging from the risk that war may erupt at any moment to the risk of becoming victims of terrorism.
Their long history of bitter conflict has caused Israelis and Palestinians to mistrust one another, leading to the suspension of the peace negotiations and the stalling of the full implementation of the peace plan announced in the Oslo Accords of 1993.
Arab countries that do not border Israel make their most significant contribution to helping Palestinians by providing financial aid. They could help the peace process progress by continuing to provide aid that will help stabilize the economy of the future Palestinian state. They may even want to consider increasing aid as peace talks are going on in order to show their support for Palestinian statehood. As for Arab countries neighboring Israel, it is in their best interest to coexist peacefully with Israel, as attested by the fact that Egypt (in 1979) and Jordan (in 1994) signed peace treaties with Israel and military conflicts then ceased along those borders.
The continuation of the status quo is no longer sustainable for either side. Israel still retains military superiority against Arab countries but no longer benefits from the aura of invincibility gained during the Six-Day War since subsequent wars have shown that Israeli military power can be challenged successfully. It is in the best interest of all nations of the Middle East to cooperate for peace.
Peaceful coexistence must be based upon the following premises:
(1) Israel and Palestine must coexist as two separate states. Their legitimacy must be recognized by all Arab states as the outcome of a directly negotiated peace process.
(2) Acts of terrorism against Israel must come to an end with the help of Islamic scholars persistently teaching that terrorism against civilian targets is incompatible with Islam.
(3) A settlement must be agreed upon regarding the status of Jerusalem. In such a settlement, the Jewish and Arab sections of the city could serve as the capitals of Israel and Palestine, respectively, while the “Old City” holy to all three Abrahamic religions becomes a semi-autonomous region under the oversight of the United Nations.
(4) Everyone must have the opportunity to live without being under constant threat of physical violence and/or dehumanizing treatment.
(5) Everyone must have the opportunity to enjoy basic human rights and civil liberties.
(6) All parties must cooperate to preserve and strengthen peace. Such cooperation must encompass the implementation of an action plan to fight entrenched and pervasive mutual prejudices.
(7) All parties must collaborate in sharing the resources of the region to raise the standard of living of all of its peoples and especially of Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
We anticipate that a lasting and honorable peace will lead to a Middle Eastern Renaissance as well as to the inception and gradual growth of a regional supranational alliance similar to the European Union.
Current Situation and the Irony/Tragedy of the Middle East
The current political and socioeconomic situation of the Middle East, which is the cradle of civilization where the first permanent human settlements were created and some of the most important advances in human history took place, is deplorable. Wars, internal struggles, terrorism, dictatorship, poverty, and deficits in educational attainment have been widespread in the Middle East for more than a century.
Although the many conflicts that plague the Middle East today (such as the internal struggles of Syria and Egypt, the sectarian strifes in Lebanon and Iraq, the Kurdish problems of four countries in the Middle East, and the inter-tribal conflicts in Yemen) have many different causes, the most persistent and painful issue is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that has been raging for a century. This conflict extends beyond Israel and her immediate neighbors. Its consequences are wide-ranging; as a result, the conflict remains the central issue today in international relations. It can play a domino effect and threaten peace and stability in the region and throughout the entire world.
The main parties to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are two ethnically related (Semitic) peoples, Jews and Arabs, both among the most ancient inhabitants of the Middle East and each tracing their roots to the Biblical prophet Abraham. It is a sad state of affairs that these two highly resourceful, deeply rooted, and closely related peoples are in a constant conflict where they are making life miserable for each other as well as threatening world peace.
If Israel and the Palestinians could compromise and end the conflict, both peoples would be able to improve their economic and political ties with other nations, significantl
y relaxing tensions both in the Middle East and in the whole world. Furthermore, by doing so, they could also pave the path towards the development of a bright new Middle Eastern civilization. The accumulated experience, cultural heritage, economic wealth, and natural resources of the Arabs and Jews who live in the Middle East today are, indeed, of such a caliber as to make such a Middle Eastern Renaissance possible if peace is established.
The current situation where Israel and the Palestinians are bogged down in a seemingly endless mutually destructive conflict when they could instead be working together towards a brighter shared future is both the irony and the tragedy of the Middle East.
Being realists, we recognize the difficulty of resolving these deep-seated hostilities and conflicts. Hence we understand the temptation to succumb to pessimism. Nonetheless, there are grounds for optimism. It is sufficient to compare the Europe of the past with the Europe of post-World War II. The Europe of the past was a battleground where bloody conflicts raged for centuries. Postwar Europe has seen not merely the emergence of a lasting and honorable peace between erstwhile bitter long-term enemies such as France and Germany, but also the emergence and consolidation of the European Union where these enemies of the past now collaborate with each other economically as
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