Solving the Arab-Israeli Conflict

Over the past 40 years, proposals to end the Arab-Israeli conflict have generally specified the following two pre-conditions. 1. The Islamic nations must recognize Israel's right to exist in peace in the region. 2. Israel must return the Gaza and West Bank areas. These pre-conditions appear to conflict with the following aspects of Islamic and Jewish religious traditions. 1. Mohammed's final command that only one religion must occupy the Arabian Peninsula; therefore, the Jews must leave. 2. Moses' final command that the Israelites must occupy the Promised land, which includes Gaza and the West Bank; therefore, the Arabs must leave. Previous proposals have largely ignored these religious traditions and have sought to apply political solutions to the symptoms of these religious issues. Islamic and Jewish political leaders are well aware that accepting their pre-condition would violate critical aspects of their respective religious traditions. Therefore, both sides appear to have negotiat..