One of the most controversial conflicts of our time — written by an Israeli citizen who has tried to present both sides honestly. This article was written in 2019. October 7, 2023 changed what follows.
One of the most controversial conflicts of our time — written by an Israeli citizen who has tried to present both sides honestly. This article was written in 2019. October 7, 2023 changed what follows.
Israel vs Palestine — one of the most controversial conflicts of our time. Indeed, it is a very complicated conflict that requires an in-depth solution and compromises from both sides. Although every person has an opinion and, more surprisingly, a solution to the conflict, I’ve discovered that only a few — including those who are involved deeply in the conflict — have the knowledge, the correct facts, and the information to estimate the situation.
Palestine and Israel — The History
Shimon Peres, a former Israeli Prime Minister, once said that if we want to move forward, we cannot teach our children the history — instead, we need to move forward. The man had a point. Israel-Palestine has a complex, unsolved history that can escalate the argument rather than find a reasonable solution. No one can argue for the truth except for some archaeological evidence and written holy books that provide pieces of information. However, history is part of the present, and for the sake of comprehensive knowledge, let’s dig in.
The Name Palestine
Few know that the name Palestine was given to the inhabitants of ancient Israel in 135 AD by the Romans. After the Bar Kokhba rebellion by the Jews, the Roman Empire destroyed most of the Jewish population in the area. The method of changing the name of a minority in a specific area was common practice, and therefore the Romans called the land ‘Syria Philistines’, based on another neutral minority that had lived there before. After a short time, the name was shortened to Palestina.
The area was called Palestine for all these centuries but was recognised as a political national entity only at the end of the 19th century. At the end of WW1, the British took control of the area and officially named it Palestine. The population — Arabs and Jews — was therefore called Palestinians. As a matter of fact, both David Ben Gurion and Golda Meir, former Israeli Prime Ministers, had Palestinian ID cards.
The Name Israel
Between the 12th century BC and the 7th century BC, the Israelites spread through the land. Around the 2nd century BC, the land was officially called the ‘Land of Israel’. Between the Bar Kokhba rebellion and the establishment of the Israeli state, Israel was not known as a political institution. After the Jewish nation received its land in Palestine in 1948, the Zionist Congress had to choose a name for the new country. Among other options, Israel was chosen after a vote of 7 against 3 — the second name of Jacob, a biblical figure and one of the nation’s ancient fathers.
1948 — What Happened?
Although the conflict started at the end of the 19th century with the rise of nationalism, 1948 was the year that defined the area. More accurately: the 29th of November 1947 — the day of the United Nations Partition of Palestine.
The UN Partition Plan was meant to divide the land of Palestine and provide autonomy for the Jewish state and the Arab population. The Jews accepted the plan. The Palestinians and the Arab global leadership rejected it — for them, acceptance was a surrender to injustice, as the Jewish population was a minority before 1947 yet received 60% of the land under the plan.
The Arabs declared war — the first Arab-Israeli war — which shaped the area geographically and demographically. The Israelis prevailed, and 700,000 Palestinians were expelled from the land of Palestine to other areas (Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria), becoming refugees.
Following the war, the battle to populate the area began in earnest. Many Arabs from different parts of the world came to Palestine and were defined as Palestinians — though there are no records of this high a number of Palestinians prior to 1948. The Israelis set up a law allowing any Jewish person to receive citizenship. Following WW2, the Jewish population — mostly from Europe and Arab countries — came to Palestine/Israel and changed the demographic equilibrium of the area. This battle over demography continues to this day.
“Both sides claim that the other side used manipulative strategies to increase the population. The truth cannot be proven — and therefore must, at some point, be set aside.”
Today, there are approximately 9 million Israeli citizens: 74.4% Jewish (6,625,000) and 21% Arab (1,860,000). These Israeli Arabs — although most identify as Palestinians — are a legitimate part of the Israeli population and in many ways an example of what coexistence can look like. According to the Palestinian Authority, approximately 4.7 million Palestinians live in the West Bank and Gaza — 2.8 million in the West Bank and 1.9 million in Gaza.
The Core Problems
Although history contributes to the current conflict, there are still complex issues that must be addressed and resolved. Here are the main ones:
Land Exchanges and Borders
Obviously the main problem. The notion of land exchanges has already been acknowledged by both sides — the Oslo Accords proved recognition of this and the exit of the Israeli army from Palestinian-populated areas. For Israel, a return to the 1967 borders would leave only 25 kilometres between the Palestinian nation and the Mediterranean — allowing Arab-Muslim countries to divide the Israeli state in a war scenario. For the Palestinians, a return to the 1967 borders is mandatory to protect their major cities (Ramallah, Tulkarm, Hebron) and reclaim lost land.
The Settlements
Without question a problem requiring compromise from both sides. After the Six Days War, Israel implemented its settlements policy, creating an area inhabited by both Palestinians and Israelis. As of recent data, over 700,000 Israelis live in the settlements. Israeli settlers believe they are fulfilling the notion of a complete Israeli state. The Palestinians see the settlements as a violation and invasion of their land. A rational solution — such as Palestinians receiving proportional land elsewhere while settlements remain Israeli territory — has been proposed but never implemented.
Water Resources
Since 1967, Israel has controlled all water resources in the area, creating a serious problem for the Palestinians and international criticism of the Israeli government. Although it remains a major obstacle to sustainable peace, cooperation similar to that of Israel and Jordan can potentially be achieved.
Palestinian Military Force
The Palestinians demand the establishment of an organised military force as part of their autonomous rights. Israel rejects this, claiming that a military force can only be established years after a peace agreement and not by unstable organisations like Hamas. Currently, the Palestinian Authority has no control over Hamas, which rules Gaza militarily. Both sides agreed during the Oslo Accords that after five years from initial agreement, a Palestinian military force was to be established.
Gaza and the West Bank — How to Connect?
A core problem is the connection between Gaza and the West Bank. First, there must be a united Palestinian leadership for the purpose of one peace agreement and one Palestinian nation. If the Palestinians could unite both areas, a physical connection is mandatory — whether a tunnel, an overground road, or a protected corridor through Israeli territory.
Palestinian Refugees
In the 1948 war, around 700,000 Palestinians were displaced. The Palestinians claim their right to return. The Israelis reject this — many former Palestinian homes are now owned by Israelis who have lived there since 1948, making acceptance of this demand politically and practically impossible from the Israeli side. During the Oslo Accords, a first agreement was reached that Palestinians could return to Israel only for humanitarian need.
Jerusalem
In 1967, during the Six Days War, Israel expanded its control over Jerusalem. There are currently 12 Jewish neighbourhoods in East Jerusalem with 214,000 citizens, and 327,000 Arabs in East Jerusalem. The living conditions for Arabs in East Jerusalem are poor — low education, high unemployment, lack of adequate water and medical assistance. Jerusalem remains the single most emotionally and politically charged element of the entire conflict.
The Oslo Accords — The Closest to Peace
For many years, the Israeli government and the Palestinians refused to recognise each other or negotiate. The Oslo Accords was the first time both sides negotiated — and the first official agreement between them. The first agreement was signed on September 13, 1993, in the White House between Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.
The first agreement acknowledged and recognised the other. Before that, Israel refused to negotiate with the PLO as it was considered a terror group, while the Palestinians refused to acknowledge the existence of the Israeli state. The Oslo Accords agreed on a five-year transitional period with permanent status negotiations intended to end the long conflict by 1999.
The agreement was not implemented. The centre of its failure was the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin on November 4, 1995 — shot by a Jewish extremist who opposed the peace process. The failure of the agreement left both sides wounded and widened the gap between the two nations. It remains the closest the conflict has ever come to a framework for resolution.
“The Oslo Accords failed primarily because of a bullet fired by a Jewish extremist. The peace process’s greatest enemy was not the other side — it was extremism within.”
Egypt, Jordan, and the Media
Look at the map and you cannot help but ask: how come Egypt and Jordan are not more involved in the conflict? After all, they had control over these areas before 1967. Israel has peace agreements and diplomatic relationships with both countries. They can and should be more involved in any future solution.
The media plays a significant role in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict — and often a distorting one. Compared to other conflicts in terms of casualties, this conflict is, in relative terms, minor. The casualties estimation in the Syrian Civil War stands at around 500,000; in the Afghanistan war around 31,000; in the Rwanda genocide more than 1,000,000; in the Democratic Republic of Congo — 5.4 million. The estimated total casualties in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, prior to October 2023, stood at approximately 20,000 over more than 75 years. It is still a high number, and the conflict affects more than 12 million people’s daily lives — but the level of global media attention has always been disproportionate to the scale, driven by the political and religious symbolism of the land.
October 7, 2023 — And What Has Changed Since
This article was written in March 2019. Everything above remains accurate as a description of the conflict’s structure, history, and core issues. But October 7, 2023 changed the situation in ways that require a separate, honest account.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched the largest attack on Israeli civilians since the founding of the state. Over 1,200 Israelis were killed — the single deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. An estimated 251 people were taken hostage into Gaza. The attack included mass murder at the Nova music festival, kibbutz massacres, and atrocities documented by first responders and investigators from multiple countries. This was a war crime by any definition of international law.
Israel’s military response in Gaza has been devastating in scale. As of mid-2026, Palestinian casualties in Gaza number in the tens of thousands — figures contested between Israeli and Palestinian health authorities but broadly confirmed as catastrophic by UN agencies. The destruction of civilian infrastructure — hospitals, schools, housing — has been extensive. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is one of the worst in the world. International courts have examined Israel’s conduct and questions of proportionality remain actively contested in international law.
The hostage crisis — with a significant number of hostages still held in Gaza as of this writing — has defined Israeli domestic politics since October 2023. Multiple ceasefire negotiations have been attempted and failed. A partial deal in early 2025 led to some hostage releases in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, but a comprehensive agreement has not been reached.
What has changed since October 7: The core issues described in this article — borders, settlements, Jerusalem, refugees — have not changed. But the political conditions for any negotiated solution have deteriorated significantly. The Palestinian Authority’s credibility has been weakened. Hamas has lost significant military capability but has not been destroyed as a political entity. Israel’s international standing has suffered. The Abraham Accords — which brought Israel into diplomatic relations with the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan in 2020, and raised hopes for a broader regional normalisation including Saudi Arabia — have been frozen. Saudi normalisation, which was imminent before October 7, has been explicitly conditioned on a credible path to Palestinian statehood, which currently does not exist.
The window for a two-state solution — already narrow in 2019 — is narrower now. The settlement population has continued to grow. The political leadership on both sides is further from negotiation than at any point since the second intifada. What has not changed is the underlying logic of the conflict: two peoples, one land, a set of core issues that have been understood for decades and never resolved. The solutions that existed before October 7 still exist. The political will to pursue them does not.
The Right Interest for Both Sides
Both sides have an enormous interest in a permanent peace status and economic cooperation.
Although Israel faces many threats in the region, an agreement with the Palestinians can change the overall security situation. Israel is dealing with a perpetual conflict with the Palestinians — remove the Palestinian dimension and Israel’s day-to-day threat environment changes fundamentally. Tourism can rise, and the economy can continue to grow. The Abraham Accords of 2020 — before October 7 — demonstrated that regional normalisation is achievable and beneficial to all parties.
For Palestine, the current conditions are deeply unfair. High unemployment, a damaged economy, crime, and corruption define daily life. An agreement can significantly improve Palestinian lives. Gaza is one of the most densely populated places on earth — but it is also located next to the Mediterranean Sea. With peace, the region could attract tourism and benefit from proximity to Israel’s strong economy. The West Bank can be an attraction for the Arab world, and its relationship with Jordan and Saudi Arabia can improve.
Like any war zone, there are groups or individuals — perhaps also government entities — that will not benefit from a peace agreement. This is true on both sides. Those groups have consistently been the most powerful force against resolution.
Peace or a Perpetual Conflict?
There is no simple solution when it comes to conflicts between two rival nations with deep historical claims to the same land. I heard once that the first inequality happened when one said to the other — “this is my land.” The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is complicated and contains many issues: some are technical (land, autonomy, military) and some are cultural, regional, and national.
Similar to any other relationship, trust is the first condition for a successful relationship between these two peoples. The incidents of the 1990s — the Oslo Accords, the Rabin assassination, the Palestinian riots and terror attacks — drained both sides and emphasised how deep the divide is. October 7 and its aftermath have reopened wounds that had, in some quarters, begun to close.
Yet history can teach us differently. Many conflicts have been solved and nations that were not on good terms learned how to live and prosper side by side. Germany and France. South Korea and Japan. Israel and Egypt. Israel and Jordan.
Hopefully, listing the obstacles above will expand the public’s knowledge of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict — and by doing so, create a more informed discussion that acknowledges all the factors and elements required for an agreement. It is a complicated conflict. There is injustice from both sides. Those who assign responsibility exclusively to one side eliminate the possibility of a reasonable discussion. The injustice of one side is the constraint of the other — and acknowledging that is the first step toward a new beginning in the process: forgive, and find a solution that is already there.
This article represents the personal views of the author, who is an Israeli citizen. It does not represent the official position of AllinAllSpace on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. All casualty figures are approximate and sourced from multiple public datasets. The October 7 section draws on reporting from Reuters, BBC, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, and Amnesty International.