Rather than a military solution, thorny issues such as water management and Jerusalem’s status must be addressed at the UN for lasting peace

The multiple attacks by the Hamas, retaliations, the latest army operation carried on in Jenin Camp to drive out militants and the ongoing skirmishes between Palestinians and Israel resulting in huge casualties have further dusted off any hope of peace and negotiation. The announcement of nine settlements in the West Bank during February 2023 has been widely criticized by Palestinians and raised concerns about the possible forebodings of a third Intifada. The first major retaliation was launched by Palestine in 1978 and the second in 2000. Despite recent attempts by the US, Egypt and the UN to seek an immediate solution to the crisis West Asia continues to sit on Powder Keg. There are chances of conflict spilling over the communities within Israel which can turn out to be pernicious and may end up flaring it up further.

This also brings forth a major question: how to resolve regional conflicts so deeply interwoven in acrimonious past? perhaps this is high time each side takes a cue from the emancipation of a renowned Scottish Philosopher David Hume’s enlightenment discourse. As he once conceded “Difference is the essence of humanity. Difference is an accident of Birth and it should therefore never be the source of hatred or conflict . The answer to difference is to respect it. Therein lies a most fundamental principle of Peace and respect for diversity”. These are not merely a part of clichés but have an in-depth meaning of conflict resolution. The continuous need for peace and a common platform for negotiation has exposed the painful process of conflict and a complete trust deficit resulting in the upsurge of clashes.

While people in the region expecting for both sides to accelerate plan formulation towards peace and improving means of production, economic aggrandizement, income, and employability the reality appears to elude chances of negotiations till a breakthrough is made. As many as 2559 civilians and over 206 soldiers have died in the nasty conflict ever since the resurgence of conflict after a brief lull that ended in 2015. The area is in for trouble and must be prepared for the deadly action of truly desperate organizations such as Hamas which might even bring down the entire machinery. A trial of strength is going on between the security forces of Israel and Hamas.

The present crisis is the outcome of a combination of factors, deeply interwoven in the complicated period of the conflict in West Asia ever since 1948. Although in the past on many occasions the Israeli Government has designed a series of policies aimed at quick results, the Hamas took the extreme step of working against the peace proposals. Recently a third party (Egypt-supported) brokered peace and reconciliation efforts have been agreed upon by Hamas but the coming days will test the sustainability of such efforts. The history of past third-party mediations has not yielded positive results. In these circumstances, the solution to West Asia depends on the extent to which the present leadership of both sides can negotiate with each other. further, the mounting Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip pose a serious challenge to the peace and security of this volatile region. The Palestinian paramilitary organisation, Hamas, has already vowed to avenge the Israeli onslaught and is preparing for fresh attacks. There are going to be new challenges for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The violent attacks, some of which were retaliatory, suggest that the present crisis is deeply interwoven in the issue of separate national identities and the never-ending claim over a common piece of land. Gradually, both Israel and Palestine understood that they could only survive if a two-State solution was accepted. The Oslo Peace Accord allowed the Palestinians to build an air and sea passage in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with the then Palestinian President Yasser Arafat denouncing terrorism and the recognition of Palestine by Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

What matters at this juncture, apart from the suffering of the troops and innocent people, is how a permanent link can be established between the two sides. But what we see today are extreme circumstances absolutely without any hope for reconciliation. Therefore, this requires careful handling of the situation. To bring about a lasting solution to the ongoing conflict in the tension zone of the Gaza Strip, a comprehensive policy involving the leaders and people from Israel and Palestine and the media might prove beneficial.

Any further effort towards negotiations will have to address issues such as resolving the settlements dispute, maintaining security, the water issue, the problem of refugees and the status of Jerusalem. Israel should also know that the best way to fight terrorism is to restore its old strategy of intelligence-gathering and isolating the terrorists from the mainstream by generating more public opinion. Unless the causes of grievances are addressed, military actions can provide temporary relief. What is required is to develop a fresh perspective for a more mature reliance on international cooperation between nations to enunciate a new strategy of combined peace and cessation of violence.

(Author, a recipient of the Bharat Gaurav Award, is a professor and an expert on strategic affairs)