The Israelis and Palestinians are still fighting over control of the land known as Gaza and the West Bank, more specifically how to or even whether to divide the land between the two peoples. Assuming most agree with a two-state solution, it is still not an easy problem to solve. There are four main reasons standing in the way of solving this critical, decades-long problem: borders, Jerusalem, refugees and security. Where to draw the borders is an issue since the borders that existed before the Arab-Israeli war of 1967 have “changed” due to Israeli settlements that continue to grow along and within the West Bank. In Jerusalem, it’s even more difficult to agree on where to draw the border as Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy sites all exist practically on top of one another.
Almost five million Palestinians refugees want to return to their original homes and Israel believes these large numbers would end Israel’s Jewish majority and democracy. And for Palestinians, security means an end to Israeli occupation. For Israelis, security means removing Hamas and being able to keep an Israeli military presence in parts of the West Bank.
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