One-state solution is a blueprint for a nightmare

United States of Palestine? it works in USA a huge country, nearly a continent. It also works in Suisse (CH) and as far as I know in Germany (landers). For Israel "a qtana"...Forget about this even if in theory it seems suitable. two-states yes but no "embedded" (morcellés) states.

A single state solution can be visualised along the lines of the Swiss model. There, four nstionalities are living together in relative harmony,but who otherwise dont like each other. The answer is a weak central government and a rotating presidency. And no religious dominance.

Ed:"Most countries of the world are non-homogeneous" Yes Ed including Israel, 20% Arab remember Ed:"Look at how Jews are welcome to live all over the world." Does that include Jordan, Saudi, Yemen, etc etc... Just a ridiculous statement Ed. Jews are not welcome in most of the muslim world. Ed:"So why can`t Israeli Jews live in peace with others?" I'm sure it will happen... the moment their enemies stop trying to kill them.

The Palestinians did not wake up one day and decide Jews were the enemy, etc. While the Jews although a very small minority less than 5 percent lived on the land known as Israel and the occupied territories at the turn of the 20th century, they weren't declared public enemy #1 for no reason. Archive the ancient 1911 Palestinian newspaper titled "Filastin" which is Palestine in Arabic which indicated that there was a plan by European Jews to immigrate to the land and remove the native Arab Palestinian population. This conflict will never be solved by fighting, but give me a break. I'm not saying Palestinians have been angels throughout, I just like you disagree with some things the Palestinians have done, however you can't put the majority of the blame on the victims. You have to look at the origins of the conflict and it is what it is.

either solution is a win for palestinians and a loss for apartheid israel. Time is clearly against apartheid israel. plain and simple.

Well stated Professor Strenger. I attended TAU in 1978 and wondered how Israel could retain it's Jewish character and the land which I traversed so freely then. A Jewish Democtratic Israel is imperative. Anything which does not enhance that vision, harms it.

A major problem in deciding between a two-state or one-state solution is the inability of the Israeli demographers to count. We have seen them double count the Palestinians in Jerusalem and seriously overcount (using UNWRA figures) Palestinians elsewhere. Until a realistic demographic picture is available, there is no sense in debating this issue.

This editorial is wacky! "How on earth could two groups with such different cultures and histories..." You are the same race from the same country. The ONLY difference is religion. If America can do this with decedents of slaves of a different race from a different continent, you can too. Stop fighting!

The secret enabling enemies to live together is to provide parity in power regardless of demographics. Have two states (Israel and Palestine) on the same land (Mediterranean to Jordan River). Let people live anywhere they want and be governed by their own state. Matters relating to the common economy, territory and intermingling of the populations would be dealt with by a condominium government in which both nations would have equal say. Parity in power enables each nation to have protect its citizens from domination by the other nation. Parity in power would ensure that individuals, regardless of nationality, had their fair share of land, water and other resources. Beyond parity in power, there needs to be a condominium-funded effort to bring reconciliation between the two peoples by revamping textbooks, having a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and so on. See www.parityforpeace.org.

The modern Jewish state of Israel has been based on a two-state partition of the British Mandate of Palestine since the Jewish state was created by the UN under this principle in 1947. It's even referenced in Israel's declaration of independence of May 15 1948. As others here have pointed out, it has been the Arab League since that time that has supported a one-state solution. Only recently (last 16 years for the PLO, seven for the League) has the two-state scenario been adopted.

For a single state to work, all you have to do is pass and enforce laws. Both Arabs and Jews would have to obey those laws. It happens in most of the rest of the world. The problem is that the current Israeli regime does not like to adhere to laws. Occupied territories being expropriated illegally. Children being slaughtered illegally. Attacks on neighboring countries. . . If the current Israeli government could only try to live within the law. . . I believe that the overwealming majority of the Palestinians and Israeli Jews want to live in peace. It is time to rein in the crazys from both sides and the majority of peace lovers to get on with things in a single state. It would take time to shake it down and make it work. I don't believe that in the privacy of the ballot box, many of the decent people in the area would vote for war.

A one-state solution would be as successful as Lebanon or Yugoslavia and needs to be avoided. The two state solution is not a boring, unimaginative solution driven by the unreasonable human need for a nation-state. It is means of keeping recognized boundries so that bloodbaths do not occur. That "good fences make good neighbors" was never truer than in the Middle East. Jews' demographic majority in mandatory Palastine means Palastinians losing out if their rights conflict with Jews. If Palastinains had a demographic majority, sooner or later there would be massacres of Jews, and the Arab world turn a blind eye just like they do in Darfur. The U.S. is not a counter-example. The U.S. succeeds because it is so big that no one denomination or ethnic group could ever hope to dominate. Put two groups with competing national narratives together in a small place and you have Northern Ireland. Without a Great Britain to supervise, you have a Bosnia or perhaps Rwanda.

Here are the ONLY five possible outcomes to the current unstable situation: - Two-state solution - dead - there is no land for the Arabs and no one in Israel with the power and will to make land available. - One-state solution - dead - Jews don't want to be a minority ever again. - Dump the Arabs on Egypt/Jordan - dead - They will NOT agree to it, because it would destabilize both and lead to massive war. - Ethnic cleansing of Arabs - dead - trying to do it would lead to massive war. - Ethnic cleansing of Jews - probable within 25 years as result of massive war. As I see it, the existing status quo is unstable and will lead to massive war since no one is willing to have a fair solution. Enjoy your future.

Both Jew and Arab are foreigners claiming to be natives - the Jews and others created a holocaust against the Canaanites - and later the Jew was a victim of the same way of thinking

I am not saying that this is necessarily right, but you can only get kicked in the teeth so many times without reacting. I don't agree with all of Israel's policies, but I they were not formed in a vacuum. The barrier was not built until after decades of suicide bombings forced them to do something to protect them, which after all, is the primary duty of a government: To protect it's citizens.

You Cannot really compare the US with Israel. First of all, we here in the good old USA may live in relative harmony; we certainly do not live in "perfect" harmony, as you state. Secondly, people came to this country voluntarily, knowing that there was a great mix of peoples. But ask the Native Americans about this "harmony". The decades of the ongoing Indian Wars, which nearly exterminated them. And they continue to be the most disenfranchised, poorest of all Americans to this day. The situation in Israel is not the same for one reason. Jews have a historical claim to the land, as do the Pals. But, the Pals do not accept this fact, and view us Jews in the same light as Native Americans viewed the European immigrants to their country: Unwanted intruders. While Jews tried to include the Pals into their new nation, it was they who refused, and used continual violence and terror tactics against Israelis. After so many years of this, is it any wonder the way that many Jews have reacted?

99.9% of its inhabitants are immigrants, or their descendants, who came with no prior connection to the land. The native peoples were massacred; those spared were and still are, deprived of their rights and heritage. You all share Christianity which make a very homogeneous set of values, by world scales. You are so homogeneous you cannot even fathom how different cultures value things differently. (like honor, money, ancestors, family, job, clan, leaders, violence, beauty, personal accomplishment). Try traveling. Your "solution" is irrelevant.

You are a fool. Science doesn't support your statements. Genetically the pals have a closer relation????? Well what ancient Israelites' tissue did you use to compare to the Arabs? Your just plain old dumb. Jews who are the real true descendants of the Israelite s are more closely related to each other then to anybody else. One of my daughters is darker like her mother, my other daughter is lighter. But guess what even though they look different then I do doesn't take away from the fact that they are my blood daughters. You understand genetics as well as my imaginary dog.

The term Palestinian is one problem. The people who live in the west bank or Jordanians and those in Gaza are Egyptians. Both lands were captured legitimately by Israel. If Israel chooses to give up any land it is to Jordan. Stop this Palestinian nonsense. It is make believe

That the status quo is the iron fisted dictator that has not even been able to hold "peace"? What do you expect to happen even in a two state - what would the difference be? The Palestinians are calling for a secular democratic state, and Israel has never been and isn't calling for this of itself! I don't understand how the idea of a FUNCTIONING democracy, where different groups vie for power seems to be so foreign a concept here. Just stop using the word democracy to refer to Jewish Democracy!

And that is sad.

"Luckily history gives us lots of counter examples Switzerland, Spain, Canada, Belgium, the UK, South Africa......" Rubbish. Quebec is still are pushing for confederation with France. Basque in Spain still blowing people up for independence. Belgium splitting into French and German states. UK? Like the peace in N. Ireland? Failure. How about all the former Soviet states and satellites that split along ethnic lines. Kurds across Irak, Siria, Turki.... List goes on and on and on. Zionism is survival.

Window dressing apart, what runs Palestinian decision making is the right.. and clearly so it is in Israel. Since neither right will allow any serious compromise - absent the authority of Ariel Sharon - the region will follow the default route. Which means: 1. Steadily increasing Persian influence in Palestinian affairs 2. Weakening of US influence 3. Establishment of a Palestinian state with Jewish autonomy In essence, a reversal of the current situation. This is because Israel without US is not exactly a defensible state. And Palestinians, however mad they may be with Israel, are not Nazis.

1. Ethnic Cleansing-- Push the Palestinians into Jordan 2. Have a binational democracy like Belgium 3. Have a state where one group rules --Jews-- and anothers serves,liek South Africa. MOST ISRAELIS SEEM TO WANT #3

Today Arabs and Jews live in relative peace in Israel. Israeli Arabs have representation in the Knesset, they have equal rights when it comes to education , health care social security etc. However Jews who used to live in Arab and Muslim lands such as Iraq, Egypt, Yemen, Jordan, Syria and even my country of origin the secular Turkey did not have the same rights for Jews. In 1941 Jews were attacked and expelled from Iraq. The Jews of Alexandria also were forced into exile just like those from Syria and Yemen. In 1942 in Turkey we suffered an unjust tax law called Varlik Vergisi, Jews were attacked in Kirklareli in 1936, also in 1955 september 6 and 7 in Istanbul and Izmir. For your theory to be a reality the Islamic world must first reform itself and accept people of other religioons as equals and not as Kafirs (infidels in your language).

A one-state solution would not be a nightmare, nor would there be a demographic struggle. Even if no Palestinian refugees return, the Palestinians would have a majority from the outset. It would be more like South Africa after Apartheid. The real reason why a one-state solution is unfeasible is because 99% of Jews in Israel want Israel to be a Jewish State.

If we are to approach this from the perspective of justice, the problem with 'no right of return' is that it is inconsistent. The secular rationale for Israel in the first place is that the Jews were driven out, and therefore have a right to return. How can the same right be denied to the Palestinians? The only way is to resort to arguments that rely either on the sanctity of one religious text while ignoring others, ignore historical fact, or rest on pure racism. I'll grant that conceding a Palestinian right to return jeopardizes the future of a Jewish-dominated 'Israelistine' -- but expediency is not the most convincing argument. To my mind, that this is so is merely another reflection of the fundamental moral indefensibility of the Zionist project. A viable Israel cannot be reconciled with modern conceptions of justice.

It is time for Palestinians and Jews to come together to construct a movemont beyond zionism and beyond Palestinian nationalism. Time to make one vision for the two groups to live in peace and justice. Time to heal the wounds and prepare the way for the children of both groups to enjoy the miraculous potential of the the land. Time for both peoples to return to a common path. The truth is that thier path has diverged only a hundred years ago. There is so much in common between the two peoples. Enough with isolationism, bigotry, and unimaginativeness. Deep down, the apparent enmity between Jews and Palestinians will prove to be much less in potential than their wounded desire (repressed as it might be) to unite.

Most countries of the world are non-homogeneous. Even China has over 50 ethnic grops and langauges. Look at South Africa. Look at how Jews are welcome to live all over the world. In fact, look at the US with non-Jews, Jews,and Muslims all living in peace (except the occasional ADF terrorism). So why can't Israeli Jews live in peace with others? The fact of the matter is that Israeli policy is blatantly racist, and all the candy coated zionist propoganda to the contrary can't hide the facts.

Of course a single state for all living in equality and peace sounds best of all, but it not likely possible given The Jewish yearning for a state for themselves alone. To an outsider that doesn't really pass the smell test, but if that's what Israel wants then a two-state solution is the way to go. To achieve that, however, israel will have to seriously mend its ways and alter its position, starting with a settlement freeze and a recognition that East jerusalem must go to the Palestinians.

Easy. Palestinians and Israelis definitely have more in common than the people who make the United States of America. There are hundreds of Ethnicities and religions that make up the American society and all live in harmony protected by the constitution! If America could do it by enacting laws that is ethnically and religiously blind, then Israel must learn and do the same. But I agree as long as Israel continues its apartheid policies toward the Palestinians, then one stat solution remains a myth. So, it is really an Israeli choice to do what is right and change its behavior or to continue with oppression and complains.

If we look at the make up of the Jewish world, you have 74% Eshkinazy Jews who have common language "Yidish", common religion "Judaism" and a common look "Although they look nothing like the Near Eastern Peoples". The rest are made up of different origins, Ethiopian Jews, look Ethiopian, Iraqi Jews don't look like Morrocans. Indigineous Jews look like Lebanese and Syrian Jews and nonJews, and have a different culture. Zionism according to Dr. Shlomo Sands managed to create a people of followers of Judaism. The Palestinians who are the most related in DNA terms to anciant Israelites, and who are mostly the real Jews "In a national, not religious sense" are the real inheritants of the land. If Zionism managed to create a Nationality out o different groups, why exclude the most legitimate group of this nation. If Jews of extremely different cultures managed to survive together, I am sure that including the Palestinians in this Nation will succeed based on a strategy of "common history"

Israel cannot support the right of all Palestanians to return. But since there is no progress or popularity for a two state solution, most non Israels think a binational state is in the future.

Beside , no Muslim can coexist with non Muslims in equality , unless they will dominate , as you can see in any Arab/Muslim country . As for secular State , cultures can not be altered easily , especially Islamic ones .

Strenger's claim is rubbish. The PA's politically motivated, phoney "census" showing nearly 4 million Jews in Judea and Samaria have been thoroughly debunked. They overstate Judea and Samaria's Arab population by nearly 2 million. Jews are an increasing majority in Israel, including Judea and Samaria, where the Jewish birthrate is the highest of any group in Israel. Moreover, Judea and Samaria Arabs could be compensated to leave, as many wish to. There is NO excuse to implement the abominable Two State Final Solution, which Israel clearly rejected in the election.

The idea of a one state solution is evil. Even J S Mills was convinced that a democracy could prosper among people of the same political culture. Here the debate is about borders, and sooner or later borders will be established, more and less according to the parameters of Clinton proposals to the palstinians in 2000. Palestine will be a demiilitarized state, which will recieve its refugees if they want to come. Israel will relinquish part of its territory especially the Triangle area which is populated by Arabs and will retain the settlements blocs. Jerusalem will be divided more and less acording to neighborhoods. The connection bewteen Maale Adumim and Jersualem does not stand a chance , I think.

There are only 2 realities,. ONe in which the arabs show willingness to acknowledge our historical right to the land one one in which they are not. A one state solution reflects OUR willingness to live with them. The porblem is that they are not willing to live with us. Two states doesn't change this equasion

I'm referring to Marshal Tito who ruled Yugoslavia from 1945 until 1980. His regime ensured the peace, "rights for everyone," but in reality it was a repressive state that kept everyone down. Ten years after his death, the whole country fell apart, and we all remember the horrible Balkan wars in the 1990s. The ideologues who want a "one-state" solution seem oblivious to the fact that you'd need a similar authoritarian ruler and government to keep the peace. The two-state solution is a better idea.

Luckily history gives us lots of counter examples Switzerland, Spain, Canada, Belgium, the UK, South Africa...... of course one could argue that each of them have developed out of a certain historical context, well that's true, but most of them have spent a large portion of their history in inter fighting...but at some point change must happen.... The solution is simple Israeli Jews, must abandon Zionism, and join in the fight of making the world (starting from Palestine) a better place, and is we say : If you are not part of the solution then you are part of the problem

Time to rethink this upside down world where the most moral military in the world is accused of the most heinous of crimes. True: Hitler believed that the Jews were responsible for Germany's loss of WWI by using their influence to bring the US into the war. Qusestion? Is that what impelled the Shoah? Were the Zionists responsible for the Shoah? Is Israel a millstone around the neck of world Jewry?

What about federalism? It's a hybrid of the two options. The federal legal portion, could be run by a veto-based council, while each half is run by its corresponding electorate. Jerusalem could be run in the same way, with two halves and a federal whole. Perhaps the federal portion could be called Canaan and might include additional nations for balance and security. The ideal situation would be if religious reconciliation were to be facilitated, so that the underlying hostilities could be eroded over time. Due to this mechanism, at some point in the future, the divisions may be nominal, and holy places be unified.