Most people do not think that such a thing—peace and security for Israel—is possible. Yet it is possible—but it requires the wisdom and courage to chart a new path.
The old path has been to think of the Arabs—including Palestinians, even including Palestinian Israeli citizens—as being the enemy. And peace and security could only be achieved through military superiority and dominance over an implacable enemy. Whether the government was Labor (liberal) or Likud (right-wing), that has been the underlying assumption of this country founded in the aftermath of the Holocaust and driven by its memory.
But although Israel has become a strong country in virtually every sense of the word—economically, culturally, militarily—it has not achieved peace, not even true security, in its almost 80 years of existence. Obviously, the old way of thinking has not worked. What is there to lose in trying a new approach?
If you look at the Israeli and Palestinian people, they both want basically the same thing. Both have the same dream: to live in a country that validates and protects their existence and their ability to pursue life after decades or centuries of being subject to the control of others, of being persecuted, of having to live their lives in fear.
And so both have tried to create a space—a state—where they can be free to live their lives as human beings. But to do that, they have not just been willing, but felt it necessary to subjugate another people just as they have been subjugated. It's in many ways the same story as the English Puritans who founded the Massachusetts Bay Colony. They came to America to escape persecution. But once they got here and founded their own state, they persecuted all other Christians, let alone other religions, who did not agree with them.
In understanding the dynamics of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, while there is much blame to be placed on both sides, one cannot ignore that the problem began because Jews—Zionists—wanted to create a home for themselves in biblical Israel. But that was thousands of years ago; in modern times, it had become a land ruled by Turkey and inhabited mostly by Arabs—Palestinians, as they came to be called from the post-WWI British protectorate in which they lived. Jews were a clear minority (11% after WWI, which grew to 30% before WWII as a result of the Zionist movement). Jews were modern interlopers; there is no way around that fact.
How does Israel and how do the Palestinians move from where their mindset is now to the mindset that will bring them both the peace and security that they desire? Israel has just had an election in which the two opposing factions both did similarly (actually, the Benjamin Netanyahu faction got somewhat more votes and seats in the Israeli parliament). Neither has enough votes to have a majority and thus form a government.
The key lies in the Arab-Israeli parties. If the centrist coalition has the vision and the nerve to join with the Palestinians to form a government, they would have a clear majority. But the problem is that since October 7, the hearts of most Israelis have hardened toward Palestinians, and the idea of a government that includes the Arab parties is not acceptable to them. Netanyahu stoked the fires of fear in Israelis as a campaign strategy, and it worked.
There is a perhaps once-in-a-lifetime opportunity here. If the centrist parties adopted the viewpoint I am advocating and explained their reasoning to the Israeli public, they could probably move forward with a new government. Their first moves would be towards creating the conditions that would allow the Palestinians to have what they have justifiably wanted. Given the expanded Jewish settlements on the West Bank and the settlers' ability to resort to violence in recent years without repercussions, this would be a real challenge. The Palestinians must, on their part, respond by rejecting Hamas and forming a new government that will lead them in a new spirit of cooperation with Israel. With both sides acting in concert, reciprocally, attitudes will begin to change.
There will be many forces on both sides that will try to sabotage this effort, whether it's the Israeli West Bank settlers, the ultra-orthodox parties with their dreams of Eretz Yisrael, or Hamas. But both Israeli and Palestinian centrists must stand their ground and not allow these forces to derail the new push for peace and security for both sides. The future of both peoples and the lives of their children depend on the successful transition from hatred to peaceful coexistence. The alternative is never-ending conflict, no peace, no security.
Ronald L. Hirsch is a teacher, legal aid lawyer, survey researcher, nonprofit executive, consultant, composer, author, and volunteer. He is a graduate of Brown University and the University of Chicago Law School and the author of We Still Hold These Truths. Read more of his writing at www.PreservingAmericanValues.com
