The 2SS seeks to create a Palestinian state in Judea, Samaria and eastern Jerusalem (“the West Bank”) controlled by corrupt dictators who support terrorism and have a single goal—which is explicit in the Palestine Liberation Organization Covenant and Hamas Charter: to destroy Israel. That is why they exist.
The simple-minded idea that was the basis of the Oslo Accords—a Palestinian “entity,” a quasi-state which would abandon its fundamental narratives, “the Nakba” and the “right of return” (to Israel) for Arab “refugees”—was an illusion. It ignored what the PLO and Hamas want and why they support terrorism.
Initially promoted by the Clinton administration, the 2SS was supported by Israeli leftists and still is. Following widespread terrorist attacks during the second intifada, the 2SS was revived under President Barack Obama, and became the basis of an anti-Israeli policy, which the Biden administration continues. Despite its failures, the 2SS remains the focus of a policy that undermines Israel’s security and development, and is used to condemn Israel for defending its vital interests.
As long as Palestinian terrorism and support for terrorism is ongoing, supporting the 2SS makes no sense.
Those who promote it, hoping that Palestinian leaders will eventually accept Israel’s right to exist, are not only deluding themselves and the world. They are endangering Israel and undermining positive developments, such as the Abraham Accords and the recent Negev Summit with Arab countries.
Offering seemingly moral reasons for a 2SS—that “Palestinians are entitled to self-determination” and therefore, a state, and that Israel is “occupying Palestinian territory”—its supporters ignore what the PLO, Hamas and others proclaim as their genocidal goal: eliminating Israel. Is that not a moral issue?
Supporting the 2SS, therefore, not only encourages terrorism and threatens regional stability and security. It does nothing for Palestinians who would like to have good relations and work with Israelis.
There is, moreover, a real alternative: the Jordanian option as a homeland for Palestinians, especially those who oppose Israel’s existence.
Most of Jordan is uninhabited and has vast areas and resources that can be developed. Most Jordanians consider themselves to be Palestinians. Jordan was carved out of what was designated as Palestine by the League of Nations in 1922. Jordan also has a large Bedouin population, and historically was inhabited by Bedouin tribes. For Israeli Bedouin who are unhappy living under Israeli rule, Jordan offers a reasonable alternative.
A genuine 2SS, based on the Jordanian option, could also resolve the problem of more than 5 million descendents of Arab refugees living in United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA)-supported towns and villages in Lebanon and Syria. They, too, like those in Jordan, deserve civil and humanitarian rights. That can only be accomplished by allowing them to become citizens of countries where they live and others in the region, and by implementing the Jordanian option.
Moshe Dann, Ph.D., is a historian, writer and journalist living in Israel.