Now 50 years old, I cannot recall any point in my lifetime that the conflict between Israel and Palestinian Arabs has loomed more dangerous, nor has the prospect for a peaceful coexistence among their citizens seemed more remote.
This poignant crisis is further exacerbated by the terrorist campaigns of hatred promulgated by certain extremist Arab regimes funded by Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaeda network and others.
Reasonable and peace-loving citizens around the world, now and always, have rooted for our world leaders, diplomats and political scholars to deliver a winning solution to this centuries-old ideological and political stalemate.
So far, nothing has worked, and perhaps nothing can in this holiest and historically significant of places.
The answer is not going to be found by exclusion, seclusion, militias, suicide-bombings or rhetoric.
The answer resides in the recognition that the Holy Land is a special place revered by all people around the world. No other place on Earth has played a more prominent role in the shaping of human ideas, ideals or ideology. Its uniqueness should be protected for all the world’s citizens without political claim.
In other words, the Holy Land should not be a turf war. It should be a politically neutral place, not a possession of Israel or a Palestinian state.
The state of Israel and a Palestinian state can peacefully coexist by removing the political entitlement aspect of their cultural identities and political goals. Both sides have legitimate claim, and both can win by such agreement while sustaining their secular pride, human dignity and self-purpose. The political ego associated with sole or partial possession of the Holy Land becomes a moot point. The Holy Land becomes a safer place for all the world’s people to visit and enjoy.
