Some Palestinians Give Up on Their Own State
By Felicia Schwartz
June 8, 2019 7:00 a.m. ET
RAMALLAH—When the Trump administration reveals its economic plan for the West Bank and Gaza this month, it hopes to appeal to Palestinians like Amr Marouf, who manages a seafood restaurant here.
Saying his people’s “future is dark,” Mr. Marouf, 27 years old, has all but given up on a Palestinian state alongside Israel, an idea that has for decades animated international efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
“Maybe the good solution for us, for both Israelis and Palestinian people, is one state,” Mr. Marouf said.
U.S. officials want to tap into Palestinians’ frustration with the two-state paradigm and offer a fresh blueprint they say will improve their lives, if not fulfill all their long-sought national aspirations. Support for a Palestinian state, at about 60% of the population a decade ago, fell to 43% among Palestinians in 2018 and 49% among Israelis, according to a joint Israeli-Palestinian poll.
President Trump’s team will reveal the economic portion of its peace plan in Bahrain on June 25 and 26 that people briefed on the plan say will include plans to raise as much as $68 billion for Gaza and the West Bank, and neighboring countries.
The peace plan’s prospects suffered a blow with Israel’s unexpected new elections, set for September after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to form a government. The Trump administration initially planned to roll out the political dimension of its plan soon after the Bahrain conference, including its vision for borders, security, refugees and the status of Jerusalem, but that is now likely to be delayed until after the Israeli elections, American officials say. The new schedule coincides with the 2020 U.S. presidential election campaign, which could complicate the push.
Jared Kushner, the head of the U.S. peace team and Mr. Trump’s son-in-law, has said the political plan won’t use the terms “one state” or “two state.” He recently told the online political-news site Axios that Palestinians should have self-determination but questioned whether they could ever fully govern themselves......
By Felicia Schwartz
June 8, 2019 7:00 a.m. ET
RAMALLAH—When the Trump administration reveals its economic plan for the West Bank and Gaza this month, it hopes to appeal to Palestinians like Amr Marouf, who manages a seafood restaurant here.
Saying his people’s “future is dark,” Mr. Marouf, 27 years old, has all but given up on a Palestinian state alongside Israel, an idea that has for decades animated international efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
“Maybe the good solution for us, for both Israelis and Palestinian people, is one state,” Mr. Marouf said.
U.S. officials want to tap into Palestinians’ frustration with the two-state paradigm and offer a fresh blueprint they say will improve their lives, if not fulfill all their long-sought national aspirations. Support for a Palestinian state, at about 60% of the population a decade ago, fell to 43% among Palestinians in 2018 and 49% among Israelis, according to a joint Israeli-Palestinian poll.
President Trump’s team will reveal the economic portion of its peace plan in Bahrain on June 25 and 26 that people briefed on the plan say will include plans to raise as much as $68 billion for Gaza and the West Bank, and neighboring countries.
The peace plan’s prospects suffered a blow with Israel’s unexpected new elections, set for September after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to form a government. The Trump administration initially planned to roll out the political dimension of its plan soon after the Bahrain conference, including its vision for borders, security, refugees and the status of Jerusalem, but that is now likely to be delayed until after the Israeli elections, American officials say. The new schedule coincides with the 2020 U.S. presidential election campaign, which could complicate the push.
Jared Kushner, the head of the U.S. peace team and Mr. Trump’s son-in-law, has said the political plan won’t use the terms “one state” or “two state.” He recently told the online political-news site Axios that Palestinians should have self-determination but questioned whether they could ever fully govern themselves......
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