Holy Land...Unholy War!

Israel has yet again launched a series of offensives aimed at dislodging the extremists in Palestine, Yet again the international community has appealed to Israel to cease hostilities and Yet again Israel has chosen to act unilaterally...

Israel Palestine Drama resembles an Indian TV Sop that has been going on and on and on, with interesting twists and turns sometimes, but usually it is the same story that make the headlines- 'Israeli Airplanes attack militant headquarters in Gaza', 'Palestinian terrorists fire missiles into Israeli territory', 'International community asks both parties to exercise caution' and so on and so forth....

So, what exactly will it take to bring an end to this mindless never-ending conflict? It is very easy to say that Israel should withdraw from the occupied territories and treat the Palestinians as equals. This argument is analogous to the proponents of azaadi in Kashmir, those who are led to believe that an independent Kashmir is panacea to all troubles that plague Indo-Pak relations.Lets put things into perspective; Islamic extremists and Arab nationalists can not bear a flourishing Zionist entity in their midst... In the same breath one should also understand that the Zionists in Israel can not bear to share their divinely endowed lands with the Arabs...So, How do we resolve this crisis that is already undoubtedly one of world's hot spots and has the potential to suck in other regional players viz. Iran, Lebanon, Syria etc.

I, for one believe that the destinies of the Palestinians and the Israelis are intertwined in a way that for now at least it seems unwise to treat the two entities as sovereign parties. An immediate cessation of hostilities should be called for and efforts should be made to amalgamate both the Israelis and the Palestinians as a part of a common suprastate, with the State of Israel and the Palestinian Authority as two arms of this super-entity. The federal components should be completely autonomous except in matters of foreign Policy, Defence and economy. This would be a win-win solution for both the parties, if ideological differences are kept aside. The Palestinians would gain access to the Israeli markets and would prosper economically, while the Israelis, for once could gain peace with their Arab Neighbors. The Suprastate should be given a lifetime of 20 years to peacefully enable the disengagement of the Arabs and the Jews. All areas with a Jew-Arab ratio of 0.4-0.6:1 or vice versa would come under the direct supervision of the SupraState Authority. The Capital of the Supra State would be the holy city of Jerusalem, the city of the first Qibla to the muslims and the site of the temple for the jews. Post 20 years, the 2 components can be given a choice to separate or to continue with the current dispensation. The Administration of the SupraState would be managed jointly by the Israelis and the Arabs, with a Presidium at its helm.

Probably, it is easier to propose theories to resolve the issues and tougher to actually implement anything on ground, given the state of hostilities, decades of mistrust and the deep abhorrence for foreign intervention. Yet, I believe that the time has come to make some radical decisions and take some chances, else the Holy Land shall forever lay drenched in blood...