Is it possible to bring peace in the Middle East?

Can a political solution be found that allows the seven million Jews and seven million Palestinians to co-exist peacefully? Colin Chapman says a two-state solution just won’t work

Hamas’s attack on 7 October 2023, Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza, and now its war on Hezbullah in Lebanon have forced the world to ask this difficult question. The seven million Jews and seven million Palestinians who are, at present, living between the Mediterranean Sea and the River Jordan have every intention of remaining rooted where they are. So, is there any way that they can live peacefully side by side? 

We’re having to face up to the fact that the present formula – with the State of Israel controlling the occupied territories of the West Bank and Gaza - isn’t working and clearly can’t last for ever. This situation has existed since the Six Day War of June 1967 – so long in fact that it’s almost been accepted as normal, and many in the outside world are hardly aware of what it’s like on the ground.