From Dangerous Illusions to a Promising Reality

The title above is not the invention of this writer, but rather comes from the mind of the Israeli writer Gershon Baskin, who devoted his life to pursuing Palestinian-Israeli peace. He never ceases writing in Israeli newspapers that welcome his articles, such as Haaretz and The Jerusalem Post, in addition to international newspapers that share his dream of peace in the region. At times, he also undertook mediation efforts between Arabs and Israelis, most notably his role in securing the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for a single Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit. He continues to publish articles outlining pathways toward a peace that safeguards both Palestinians and Israelis alike. Under this title—which he writes in Hebrew, Arabic, and English—came the following article:

What both peoples—the Palestinians and the Israelis—must understand is that the other side will not disappear through war, terrorism, occupation, annexation, settlements, rockets, starvation, slogans, or prayers for the other’s destruction. Today, between the river and the sea, there are nearly equal numbers of Jews and Palestinians. Neither people is going anywhere, and neither can erase the national identity of the other. We are bound together by geography, history, religion, memory, trauma, and blood. The question is not whether we will live together on this land; the only real question is whether we will continue dying together for it.

For decades, both national movements have nourished themselves on illusions. Palestinians were raised on the belief that armed struggle would eventually liberate all of Palestine. Israelis were raised on the belief that military superiority could suppress Palestinian national aspirations forever. Both ideas have failed catastrophically.

The events of October 7 and the war that followed should have buried these illusions forever. Hamas did not liberate Palestine; instead, it brought indescribable devastation upon Gaza and deepened the trauma of both Israelis and Palestinians alike. Israel, despite its overwhelming military power, also failed to eradicate Palestinian nationalism. After tens of thousands of deaths, entire neighborhoods erased, and generations living under the weight of trauma, the Palestinian people still exist, demanding freedom, dignity, and statehood. The lesson should be clear: violence can kill people, but it cannot kill national identity.

Far too many leaders on both sides remain prisoners of slogans that no longer bear any relation to reality. On the Palestinian side, some still speak as though Jews are merely foreign colonizers with no legitimate connection to the land. On the Israeli side, ministers and rabbis openly speak of expelling Palestinians and maintaining permanent control over all the land. Both camps are detached from reality, and both are leading their peoples toward an endless catastrophe.

The hardest truth Palestinians must confront is that Israel is not a temporary phenomenon. It is a deeply rooted society composed of millions of people who were born there, built their lives there, buried their parents there, and have nowhere else to go. The hardest truth Israelis must confront is that Palestinians are not a demographic problem to be managed or eliminated. They are a people with national rights, a collective memory, and a profound attachment to their land and homeland. The future will not belong to those dreaming of exclusive ownership of the land, but to those who recognize that two peoples are destined to share it.

As for me, I still believe the solution lies in two states for two peoples—not because it is a perfect solution, but because all the alternatives lead either to perpetual war, an apartheid-like reality, ethnic cleansing, or the destruction of one people’s national aspirations by the other. None of these options is moral, sustainable, or realistic.

But if a two-state solution is ever to become possible, something even more important must happen first: both peoples must abandon the idea that justice can only be achieved through defeating and humiliating the other side. Peace requires Palestinians to relinquish the illusion of destroying Israel, just as it requires Israelis to relinquish the illusion of permanently controlling Palestinians.

Peace demands far greater moral courage than war. It also requires new leadership that speaks honestly to its people instead of feeding them comforting lies—a leadership that psychologically prepares both societies for compromise rather than perpetually mobilizing them against eternal enemies.

The international community, too, must stop feeding illusions. Empty statements, selective outrage, performative diplomacy, and the endless management of the conflict have all failed. The world must stop financing the continuation of the conflict and begin seriously investing in ending it.

And yes, there must be accountability for crimes committed by all sides. But accountability without a political horizon simply becomes another weapon in perpetuating the conflict. What we need today is not more revenge, but a political imagination grounded in reality. And the reality is simple: neither people will disappear or leave.

It is time to stop teaching our children that the highest form of patriotism is dying for the land. The highest form of patriotism should be building a future in which the children of both sides can live normal lives—without fear, without hatred, and without endless wars. This will not be achieved through military victory. It will only happen when both peoples finally understand that their freedom, security, and future are inseparably intertwined.