Why A Two State Solution Won't Work | Peter Hitchens 

There can’t be a two state solution when one state has sworn to destroy the other state

The only thing less realistic than a two-state solution is every other solution that's ever been considered.

Hutchins is correct in saying a 2 state solution won't work but it's not because the will is not there but there are so many different factions unwilling under any circumstances to allow it. He's right that no Arab state will sign up to it by officially recognising Israel, and some of the Arab states would be content with the conflict to continue since it would allow them to drum up support internally against a perceived common enemy despite their own failures. It's tragic but that's life!

The Jews cannot leave. Hammas won’t stop. The status quo pre October 7th is probably as good as we can hope for.

You can say the same for Cyprus "A two State Solution won't work!"

Problem is whenever you divide states there will always be a "my land" argument. Kashmir is a two state solution with the Indian and Pakistan occupied Kashmir simultaneously existing as a problem between them. North Korea continues to radicalize and threaten peace in the region since it is a two state solution. Vietnam which used to be two state solution unified and now Vietnam is the only country that did away with the two state solution and came to unify and is better off for it.

Seems like you hit the nail on the head Peter. 100% accurate.

3:04 I can confirm that. My father grew up in an Israeli town not far from Gaza. In his youth, he and his friends used to go to Gaza for night life. That seems so other-worldly now.

It should tell you something that no Arab state wants any refugees from Gaza .

He's a good example of a 2 brother solution that didn't work.

Why only there’s so few people like Peter Hitchens…?

An Italian crime boss in New York once quipped, "Three men can keep a secret so long as two of them are dead." Israel, Palestine, and neighboring Arab states would likely agree when it comes to keeping land.

There will never be a two state solution after the events of 7th October.

The fact that people from Israel used to go to Gaza for the nightlife at the weekends is the key point for me. This is how life could be around the world and there has to be some hope in that.

that chair looks so hilariously awkward for the host looollll

There will be no two-state solution. That rare opportunity was lost on 15th May 1948. And the Palestinians and the Arabs in their intransigent intolerance have forever helped chip away at any slightest prospect left.

There is already a 'Palestinian' state, Jordan. That said, many of the Palestinians are from Jordan, Kuwait, Iraq, KSA and Egypt. They are Arabs.

Sometimes Peter Hitchens nails it and I think he’s done so here spot on.

The surrounding Arab countries would oppose any permanent solution as they do not want the Palestinians in their backyard. They are only too happy to unload the unsolvable Palestinian problem onto Israel.

a remarkable insight....

Two states means normalization..Thats not the Hamas way..The Hamas way is the non existence of an Israeli state. Hence, events like 10/7 will continue..

1:07 “not necessarily publicly stated belief that Israel shouldn’t continue to exist” - that’s the only part I kind of disagree with. Palestinian leaders and activists are very vocal about this. “From the river to the sea” means all of it, the entire country, no Israel whatsoever. I’m being told on social media lately to “go back to where my grandparents came from” (for most of the Jews in Israel, there’s no legal option to do that even if they wanted to. They want us to move to Yemen or Czechoslovakia now?)

There is already a 2 state solution. Jordan and Israel comprise Palestine, 80% of which is Jordan.

As far as I know they (the Palestinians) have already rejected a 2 state solution two times

An interesting take. I visited Israel, Gaza and West Bank back in 1993. Israel (the whole country back then) was peaceful and cooperative with Jews and Arabs mingling quite happily. Of course there were occasional skirmishes outside my scope of vision, and in the North we heard gunfire from Lebanon, but it seemed perfectly safe and multicultural. I had thought the 2 state solution was already in force by 2005, hence Hamas and The other "governments" of Palestine.

Yes, totally unsustainable. Give all Palestinians an Israeli passport, and allow them to VOTE, in this fabulous democracy of the middle east, at last. There is no need for Apartheid homelands.

Really succinct & to the point

I think there is two options for long term peace, both of which require Jews around the world to vote out the far-right which governs Israel and put in it's place a government interested in a solution and willing to compromise (the leadership of the past 50 years has had absolutely no desire to do so - all peace offers such as at Oslo have been biased to the point of ridicule). Both 1 and 2 state solutions have major obstacles. In a one state solution in which all Palestinians are given Israeli citizenship the main obstacles are identity (the state would have to be renamed to Israel & Palestine, new flag, secularism) and the refugee question (all Palestinians refugees in neighbouring to be allowed to return or not) In the two state solution the obstacles are defining the borders (for stability Gaza and West Bank ought to be connected by a contiguous land without Israeli enclaves, this means that contentious land swaps and relocation of settlers will need to be agreed, and Israel must grant Palestine enough land to host it's high population) and trust to ensure that no war breaks between the two. I think to do this the first step would be to deem political groups with anti-arab sentiment in Israel as anticonstitutional/illegal and likewise to anti-semitic ones like Hamas in Palestine so that neither can ever be in power. Both Israel and Palestine need to vow to give equal rights and safety to their arab and jewish citizens respectively. For Palestine to transition into a state like that I would argue that an international peacekeeping effort must be made (and definitely not US/EU lead), maybe South American countries or South Africa could help Palestine establish itself safely and help create safe borders and deal with extremist groups.

From the river to the sea. They tell you directly what they want.

Many people said that black majority rule would never happen in apartheid South Africa, or that members of the Provisional IRA would end up in government. But it happened. At some point Israel will have to negotiate with Hamas.

On point 👌

The two state solution has been proposed and rejected (by the Palestinians) something like 6 times since 1920. Why would that change?

Those who at first do not want a 2-state solution are the Palestinians, now and always. Their only negotiating option is I want everything, you get nothing. It reminds me of Abba Eban's phrases: "It is the first war in history that the next day the victors asked for peace and the defeated asked for unconditional surrender" or "Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity" If the Palestinians really want peace and recognize the reality that Jews exist, have the right to exist and to live in Israel, peace will be possible.

If only his brother was still around. We could hear some real insight.

The Peel Commission was the first attempt at a Two State solution. It did not end well.

This is pretty brilliant. Thank you!

Thoughtful, carefully explained, and I agree the heart of the matter is this: are people in Israel and Gaza/West Bank willing to live in peace? Do they actually want that as an outcome, or do they actually want the other side gone regardless of their rhetoric?

Very true, what he said with states such as Iran.

It’ll work , that’s ultimately possible. And the solution for now . In the near future is one state solution with all the people in

One state solution. Call it Canaan. arabs and jews have equal rights, equal laws ( not martial law for west bank arabs). And some level of reparations for land stolen from arabs. If it was one state and country the arabs wouldn't attack their own country and neither would the jews .

2 states system will not work for long.

“Square peg that didn’t fit into round hole 50 years ago still doesn’t fit.”

Spot on

Great interview

I like his choice of words. He called them inhabitants of the West Bank of Gaza instead of Palestinians.

Hitchens appears to understand the reality on the ground here much better than most European leaders.

My people are the Iceni, we originally come from Norfolk, that is our historical homeland and we will have it back. Our state has a right to exist and defend it's self.

"The Israelis would never be willing" For someone intelligent I can't comprehend the willful ignorance of all of the Israeli attempts at peace, and all the radical concessions offered to the Palestinians on that front.

I don't understand what an "informal agreement" looks like. Does it mean 1 side ceases to exist? It's easy to see why a 2 state solution is difficult but the alternative is one side gives up their hopes of having a state to call their own. Which side do you think is likely to do that?

Very interesting point. This is why dividing a territory on etnic lines is not a good solution. It creates walls, enclaves, unreasonable borders between nations, splitting communitues from their natural regional centers they have been gravitating for centuries. The most important question of today's politics is whether it is possible to create a functional, democratic, multiethnic country.

Love Peter’s insights from his vast experience around the world.

All I needed to hear was “ the inhabitants of the West Bank” to understand. Palestinians that’s what they are not inhabitants, the amount of dehumanization is disgusting.

I don’t think Peter Hitchens is stable, balanced to give advice to anyone.

The Palestinian state needs to be viable, contiguous and in turn prosperous. Which is not what Israel is prepared for.

Take a map and look how small Israel is in comparison to the Arab states - Logically the Jews have a right to their own country could we please stop the nonsense and wake up, I am not saying I agree with what the governments of the world are up to but the basic question of whether the Jewish people have a right to their own country is a no brainer - we all have ours. And the history of the Palestine set up is unfortunate and was set up on purpose and the Arabs have so much land why can't they just use it and leave the Jewish people alone and stop being used as pawns in a war that will bring no resolution to anybody - AND STOP ALL THIS HATE

Ok Peter, so what about a one state solution where everybody lives freely and equally? I don't see much enthusiasm for that in Israel, do you?

3:22 The informal agreement does not work. Informal is just what makes these places a third world region. The solution is more like a cartesian method than a whatever works plan

If only such an informal solution could be done.😢

Interesting perspective. The counterpoint though is demographics - the Palestinians will eventually far outnumber the Jews given their birth rate. The Jews in Israel understand this fact implicitly and thus there is almost zero chance that a one state solution would be acceptable to them. Also the whole rationale for expelling the Palestinians from the borders of the newly formed Jewish state in 1948 (and thereby creating the Palestinian refugee problem) was to eliminate a potentially disloyal “fifth column” within the Jewish state. A one state solution will not come to pass if Israel has anything to say about it.

One secular state with equal rights for all. But some outside powers would have to force that on them, they are never going to get there on their own.

Reality check. Absurd is an understatement Thank you, Sir. The wirkd needed a reality check.

Peter Hitchens' voice reminds me strongly of Christopher's.

Another great living Briton

The fact that Peter omits what happened to the Palestinian and the British civillians pre-1948 is shocking.

They're called the 'forever wars' for a reason.

A one-state solution is equalling as absurd because si long as Israel is defined as a Jewish state it can't be ever considered a real democracy because by virtue of its name, it presupposes the ethnic and religious superiority of one group, the Jews, over any other group of citizens. It's no different to segregation America which was defined as a white country where the white population were given more rights than other groups, such as the black population and the Native Americans. The only way for a one-state solution to work is for Israel to no longer be a Jewish state, but a full secular democracy, and that's never going to happen. We already see how Palestinian Israeli residents are treated simply because they're not Jewish

I used to admire late Cristopher Hitchens until he started preaching War to end all wars in early 2000s. I liked to hear Peters insight in Russian and European politics especially last couple of years. Having seen the whole interview I can only say that - sometimes - people with a great insight are not great human beings. Peter Hitchens shows not only political bias and racial prejudice towards people that have been molested for decades - he implies that continuation of this horror is the only way forward because of a possibility that in a future Palestinian state an ellection could be won by Hamas or some other extremist option. Exstremist political options with a Mesianic agenda and The End of Days hopes win increasing number of wotes in Israel every year. Does that mean we should dismantel it out of fear they ll harm their sovereign neighbours? Again and again the brothers confirm when morality is at stake that There's a glitch in the Hitch...

One of the big issues that nobody wants to talk about is viability. Back before Zionism there were hardly any people living in this area. Just a few hundred thousand people. The reason for this is clear - it was desert. Now if you look at a map of the world divided into net exports of food and net importers of food you will see that the whole of the Middle East except Syria has a major problem. Most of the nations of the Middle East have allowed their populations to grow to unsustainable levels because they are reliant on oil to feed them - oil which is going to run out in the not too distant future. Israel imports a very high percentage of its food - but it can afford to do so because it is a high tech nation with strong exports and one of the highest GDP per capita in the world. Palestinians are propped up by charity from the West. It's really just on outsized refugee camp. It's a joke nation.

Some people really aren't meant for public speaking

One option is for Israel to manage the West Bank and Gaza as territories, and for Israel to maintain security in both areas. For example, Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States.

The problem is the solution is not acceptable to either side, which is you need to each country as a separate joined nation and both sides want the religiously significant area's.

Don’t just tell us what won’t work. Tell us your solution.

Over the years I find that I have moved away from the idea of a two state solution to one akin to that outlined by Hitchens above.

Just wow.

Palestinians left Israel, now they want to come back. It's a bit dumb considering Israel is small considering the vast areas surrounding Israel and the rest of the world.

I'm an Israeli, he sounds like those who say 'oh, the good old days in the south (of the U. S. A) before the Civil War, there was less strife between slaves and owners, and they lived together'

Some problems have no solution.

Absolut true

Unique and helpful insights.

If only he'd convinced Rabin back in the day. He might still be alive.

"The Israelis won't concede enough"? He's barking up the wrong tree.

"There can’t be a two state solution when one state has sworn to destroy the other state " This kind of disingenuous or ignorant remark is so frustrating... " When one state has etc" Well one State is destroying the other since 1948 ,, That is the factual view,

When one of the two 'states' doesn't really exist, it's hard to come up with a real 'two state' solution. Israel is and always has been, from the day Joshua and Caleb crossed the Jordan, the other not so much. It's that simple.

Peter, I suggest you go back and watch your brother's multiple videos on how the "Israel's right to exist" notion, since its inception, has been used and abused to ever expand Israel's territory and/or remain being an occupying force over the Palestinians for decades. So, of course on those terms there cannot be a two state solution. Different approach, same conclusion.

I don't disagree with anything he says but there's an obvious follow up question at the end. People living side by side in an in formal peace...the question is do all those people living side by side have the same rights?

This is wrong on so many ways. 1. Whether or not Israel likes the idea of giving up land it illegally occupies is irrelevant under international law. One's security interests does not justify the amseizure and annexation of land, whether it is done by Russia in Ukraine or Israel in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. 2. Israel scuppered the Two State Solution- Benjamin Netanyahu bragged about it. Since the Oslo accords, Israel has increased the settler population in the occupied territories from 50,000 to over 700,000. Taking land kills the 2SS more than violence. 3. With the collapse of the USSR and over a million Jewish immigrants to Israel, Israel no longer needed to permit Palestinians work permits in Israel to carry out the labouring jobs. Peace plans did not remove the economic necessity of cheap Palestinian labour; cheap labour from the USSR did. 4. Gazans elected Hamas because they resisted occupation while Fatah tried to negotiate and got nowhere. If you don't want militants to be elected, work wirh the people trying to negotiate. This whole clip is such garbage.

Rather than an unworkable two-state solution, how about a five-state solution? Arabs can live in Israel (as long as they remain peaceful and law-abiding), Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Egypt. Jews can live in Israel (The Arab countries are pretty much Judenrein these days, but I guess we can deal with that...). Let Egypt have Gaza (as if they would want it...). The West Bank? Jordan was asked to stay out of the Six-Day War, but joined in and lost. Some games are played for keeps.

The damage is done...there is no two state solution.

Yet people think that the 2 state theory of Pakistan and India was a good idea, history has proven otherwise.

what a smart man, explaining reality in simple terms.

Unfortunately, Christopher was smarter than his brother. Shows to tell that you can grow up in parallel environments surrounded by more or less the same peers and still have diverging thoughts. I appreciate life's diversity..but at the end of the day, what matters is truth.

But there was an intifada before the formal peace treaties...

If there is no 2 State. Then there has to be 1 State,. Then that 1 state will either be 'With Equal Rights for All', aka, 'Not Jewish'. Or there will be an apartheid state.

John you need to get Douglas Murray on your podcast. The last time I saw this guy in an interview he was literally unhinged with his narcissism insulted by literally everything the interviewer asked him. It was unbearable to watch his histrionics.

You can come up with 1,000 reasons why it will not work. I only need one reason as to why 2 states is the only way...there is no other realistic way to solve this problem.

Five times Israel offered a Palestinian State and five times the Palestinians rejected the offer! Why? The answer is Palestinians were required to affirm that Israel has a right to exist. There should never be a 6th offer by Israel.

People from Southern Israel used to go to Gaza for the night life? Amazing.

Is anyone still proposing a 2-state solution? I thought that idea was already dead.

Both sides want the other side driven into the sea.

The South African solution is now the only solution, whether both sides like it or not.