Emma Reust 5/19/11 World Politics Final Project The Israel-Palestine conflict has been ongoing since 1948

when Israel became a country. The conflict has cost billions of dollars and created thousands of refugees, and has also claimed over 14,500 lives. This conflict arose from the creation of Israel following WWII when millions of Jews were displaced from Europe and were looking to form their own country in their ancestral homeland. For centuries there has been conflict related to the ownership and control of the land surrounding Jerusalem and the holy land. When Israel was established this age-old conflict was rekindled, and new problems were created. Four main issues need to be addressed for any Israel-Palestine peace process to work. The first issue is that of Palestine becoming a recognized country with a stable leadership. The second issue concerns the illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which is the main concern on both sides. The third issue is what would happen to the citizens on both sides if Palestine becomes a country. The final issue is the control and occupation of Jerusalem, which is the holy city for Jews, Christians and Muslims. The first issue that needs to be addressed within the Israel-Palestine conflict is that of Palestine becoming a recognized country again, and what kind of leadership it would have. Currently, Palestine is a territory within Israel that is largely controlled by the Israelis. Palestine is also split with the West Bank on the eastern side of Israel and Gaza on the western side.

I propose that the borders of Palestine be drastically changed and that the leadership of Palestine be handed over to Jordan for a year while a new stable government is created. The boundaries of new Palestine would run from the Sea of Galilee in the north to the city of Zin in the south, and extend west to the major railroad, and east to the Jordan River along the current established border with Jordan. This would nearly double the current land area the Palestinians have now, and it would reunite the country. Gaza would be given up to the Israelis in exchange. One of the biggest conflicts on both sides of the Israel-Palestine conflict is the illegal Israeli settlements that are found throughout Palestine. These settlements cover around 2,200 square miles and over 220,000 Israelis live there, mostly in the West Bank. They were created on land claimed by Israel after the 6-day war in 1967 when Israel invaded and expanded into the West Bank and Gaza. The Palestinians would like to have all of this land returned and all of the Israelis removed. I propose that the Israelis currently living in the settlements move back to Israel, and the land be returned to the Palestinians. The Israelis who move would be compensated with new property in what is now Gaza. Both the Palestinian and Israeli governments would be held responsible for the joint removal of the Israeli citizens. If the Israelis leave their homes peacefully the homes would be turned over to the Palestinian government to be given to their citizens. If they did not leave peacefully by a jointly agreed upon amount of time, the homes would be bulldozed and the residents forcefully removed. The third issue that needs to be resolved is what would happen to the citizens affected by Palestine becoming a country. Currently, Palestine is not recognized as a country, so its citizens are at the mercy of the Israeli government, and many are living in other

countries. For peace to become a reality, these people will need to be recognized as citizens of their own country. Also, if Palestine was to become a country and have its borders changed there would be many Israeli citizens that would need to be relocated. I propose that any citizens who wish to stay in their homes within the new borders be allowed to stay and have the right to dual citizenship. Those who wish to relocate to their home country would be funded by the country of their origin to move. The control of Jerusalem has always been a problem, as Israel has control of the city but is the holy city for Jews, Christians and Muslims. I propose that Jerusalem and its surrounding areas be turned into a city state such as the Vatican City, with its own independent government. Each of the four religions would control their respective four quarters of Jerusalem, which have already been established, but they would have to function cooperatively in all major decisions. This would remove the city from the larger conflict between Israel and Palestine. There have been numerous attempts to end the Israel-Palestine conflict but none have worked. The ideas that I proposed are based off of many of the peace attempts that may have worked but did not. For my ideas to work there would have to be cooperation from both Israel and Palestine. Also, there would have to be cooperation from the surrounding countries and from the religious leaders of Jerusalem. Both Israel and Palestine need peace but it is a long way from becoming a reality.