Anyone who cares about promoting a peaceful relationship between Israel and its neighbors and wants to secure the future for Israel as a Jewish, Democratic state should be in support of a two-state solution, according to a member of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, who spoke in Upper Sherman on Tuesday.
The two-state solution calls for an independent State of Palestine alongside the State of Israel, as opposed to a one-state solution, in which a unitary, Israeli-Palestinian state would be created. Yehiel Bar, Deputy Speaker of the Knesset and Secretary General of the Labor Party, said that he supports a two-state solution because he wants to solve the conflict and achieve peace and security for Israel rather than only managing the conflict.
“I belong to those who believe human life and a better future is worth more than another inch or two of territory,” said Bar. “I strongly believe that we should aspire to have a respectful divorce with the Palestinians rather than this twisted bloody marriage that we’ve had for years. They will not disappear just like we will not.”
Bar said that while he supports the two-state solution right now, it would fail demographically because not enough Muslims would support it. However, 47 percent of Palestinians and 46 percent of Israeli Jews support a two-state solution, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The future of the conflict will most likely be heavily affected by the elections for the 21st Knesset that will be held on April 9. Bar said that he is hopeful that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be unseated this coming election. Bar often opposes Netanyahu, who the Israeli attorney general announced on Thursday morning will be indicted on charges of corruption, pending a hearing.
“We have a chance to replace Netanyahu for those of us who want to unseat him, not like the previous election. With the mercy of the voters and God, we may do so, but it’s very complex,” said Bar. There are 47 parties running in the current election, which has made the political climate more fragile and complicated, according to Bar.
Bar served as an officer at the Communications and Electronics Headquarters in the Northern Command before he entered political life, according to his website. He said that he decided to join politics after the assassination of the former prime minister Yitzhak Rabin. “It didn’t seem to me that the mission of any leader, right or left, should be stopped by three bullets in the back,” said Bar. “I entered political life after the army, and I have tried to help fulfill his mission to achieve peace between us and the Palestinians.”
Shayna Weiss, associate director of the Schusterman Center for Israel Studies, said that she hopes a solution can be reached for the conflict and that “we don’t have the luxury of being cynics.”
“A two-state solution to the conflict would open up so many doors for social equality and relations with the rest of the Arab world,” said Weiss. “As Americans, sometimes it’s easy to lose hope, but we have to remember that these are real people with real lives.”
Weiss said that Brandeis has many opportunities to learn about what is happening in Israel and to stay informed. For more information, visit the Schusterman Center for Israel Studies located on the third floor of the Mandel Center for the Humanities.
