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A Jerusalem Proposal

© lawhawk

With the continued stalemate in the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations for a permanent agreement based on the Oslo and Wye Conference Accords, the question remains how to bring both sides together on the issues and allow both sides to claim a victory. Jerusalem will be the focal point for bulk of the problems as it is the spiritual home for Jews as well as Muslims. The spiritual ties to Jerusalem should not be overlooked when trying to determine how to solve the problem as the religious overtones can overwhelm and prevent any meaningful dialogue.

In 1947, the United Nations proposed that Jerusalem would be internationalized, but the subsequent War of Independence prevented the UN decree from taking full effect. Jerusalem was divided into two parts, the Western portion under Israeli control and the East annexed by Jordan. It was during the 1967 Six Day War that the city was united once more, and Israel formally annexed the entire city into Israeli territory although many countries refuse to recognize the annexation pointing to the UN Res. 242 and Camp David Accords.

Israel steadfastly maintains that Jerusalem should never be divided again and that it will remain the capital for Israel. Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasir Arafat has stated that Jerusalem will be the Palestinian capital once statehood is declared as well. Although there is no parallel for dual capitals in the same city, there may be a solution if both sides are flexible enough and willing to risk infuriating the extremists within both societies.

Jerusalem should not be divided once more as that would only detract from the ability to draw tourists and bring peace to the region. Jerusalem is a beautiful city that deserves better than to be divided once more. Even though there are bitter political differences, the religious atmosphere in Jerusalem is generally calm as this holy city is home to the three major monotheistic religions. A permanent solution for Jerusalem should include this fact. Religious clerics from the three religions should form a council that assists in governing this city. They would be able to help foster religious tolerance and openness that would allow the city to better provide for pilgrims to the city.

Israel and the Palestinian Authority could both maintain their capital offices within Jerusalem, treating the city as an international city with open borders. Both Israelis and Palestinians would be able to claim the city as their capital and both would jointly appoint a ruling council that would make the day to day decisions regarding city affairs excluding religious matters. Security affairs could be maintained by a combined force of Israeli and Palestinian guards who are independent of existing military and security structures so as to give new flexibility and independent identity to the guards.

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