TWO STATE SOLUTION

The two-state solution refers to a proposed resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, envisioning the establishment of two separate sovereign states, Israel and Palestine, coexisting side by side within agreed-upon borders.

Key elements of the two-state solution typically include:

• Borders: Negotiating the borders between Israel and Palestine, which would likely be based on the pre-1967 lines (also known as the Green Line), with potential land swaps to accommodate demographic realities and security concerns.

• Jerusalem: Addressing the status of Jerusalem, which is considered a holy city by Jews, Christians, and Muslims. The two-state solution often proposes Jerusalem as the capital of both Israel and Palestine, with East Jerusalem serving as the capital of the Palestinian state.

• Security: Ensuring the security of both states, including mechanisms for demilitarisation, border security, and counterterrorism cooperation.

• Refugees: Resolving the issue of Palestinian refugees, who were displaced during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war and subsequent conflicts. The two-state solution typically involves compensation, resettlement, and/or return options for Palestinian refugees, while also acknowledging Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state.

• Settlements: Addressing the status of Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. Many proponents of the two-state solution advocate for the dismantlement of Israeli settlements located outside of the agreed-upon borders of Israel.

• The origins of the two-state solution can be traced back to the 1930s during the period of British rule in Palestine.
• In 1936, the British government formed a commission led by Lord William Robert Peel, commonly known as the Peel Commission, to investigate the reasons behind the Arab-Jewish conflicts in Palestine.
• A year later, the commission recommended dividing Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states. At that time, Jews constituted approximately 28% of the population of Palestine.
• According to the Peel Commission's proposal, the Arab state would encompass the West Bank, Gaza, and the Negev desert, while the Jewish state would include much of Palestine's coastline and the fertile Galilee region. However, the Arab population rejected this proposal.
• Following World War II, the United Nations Special Commission on Palestine (UNSCOP) presented another partition plan. This plan suggested dividing Palestine into three territories: a Jewish state, an Arab state, and an international zone for Jerusalem.
• Under the UNSCOP plan, Jews, who comprised about 32% of Palestine's population, were allocated 56% of the land.
• The partition plan was endorsed by the UN General Assembly (Resolution 181). Despite India's vote against it, the Arab nations rejected the plan, while the Zionist leadership of Jewish settlers in Palestine accepted it.
• Subsequently, on May 14, 1948, the Zionists unilaterally declared the establishment of the state of Israel.
• This declaration sparked the first Arab-Israeli war. By the time an armistice agreement was reached in 1949, Israel had seized approximately 22% more territory than initially proposed by the UN