I have written much more than I wanted to write. Yet there are many issues I have not addressed and I have only touched lightly on some of those covered. Surely this is enough for now. My main emotion is one of sadness at the plight of the two peoples on our small parcel of land. Israelis and Palestinians alike are sunk in fear, anger and  pain. Vociferous, one-sided condemnation of Israel will not help to improve the situation. Pressure on the Palestinians to stop terrorist attacks is critical. While it is imperative that a peace track be reestablished, this cannot be done in a context of terrorism. This was the position of Britain in its dealings with the IRA and of the US in its refusal to condone violence as a negotiating tool. Once negotiations are underway, pressure on both the Israeli and Palestinian leadership will be needed for all to abandon unrealistic dreams.

Le me conclude by stating the settlement of the conflict that I support and believe will ultimately be reached. Dishearteningly, it may come only in many decades and after many more lives are ruined and lost. The help and pressure of the governments of the world will be needed to reach a settlement, and that help and pressure will have to take a very different from than it has so far.

Two states, one Palestinian and one Jewish, will exist in the territory between the Sea and the river Jordan. The boundaries of these states will be similar to those that existed before 1967, with small adjustments to enable the Arab State of Palestine not to govern large numbers of Jews and the Jewish State of Israel not to govern large numbers of Arabs who prefer to be under the sovereignty of the other States. [This also means that few Arabs from outside Israel will be accepted into Israel as "returning refugees," because more would destroy Israel as a Jewish state from within.]

The boundaries will have to provide contiguous territories for the Palestinian State and a passageway between the West Bank and Gaza. They will also have to take into account that fact that the central populated area of Israel is currently only about 8 miles wide. Jewish settlements will be removed from the West Bank (except in the border areas agreed upon by both sides and for which trades of land will be made) and from the Gaza Strip. Both States will have their capitals in different sectors of Jerusalem. 
Both States will share in the protection of Holy Places in Jerusalem.

This solution to the conflict is very close to the so-called "Clinton plan" and to the final proposals made by the Barak government of Israel, but rejected by Arafat and the Palestinian leadership. Neither the Palestinian nor the Israeli populations were happy with the proposals at that time, but the leaders could probably have sold it to them had they worked hard to do so. Today, in light of events since Sept. 2000, neither population would see this as a just proposal or one that promises them security. It will probably take outside pressure to overcome the sense of injustice, and steps over many years during which quiet prevails to build confidence that such a solution can give security to both peoples.

We must work toward a situation in which there is little reason for our populations to believe that we wish to annihilate one another. There will then be hope that both sides can slowly be persuaded to endorse policies they currently reject. We were once almost there. Maybe we can get there again.

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