On Thursday, September 4th, Heterodox Academy and the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences co-sponsored a discussion with Ambassador Dennis Ross, an advisor on Middle East issues to three U.S. presidential administrations, and Ghaith al-Omari, former executive director of the American Task Force on Palestine. This productive discussion, free and open to the public, focused on the challenges that fuel the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, the prospects for peace in the Middle East today, and how people who disagree about the conflict can engage in productive conversation in search of a better future.

Dennis Ross: Dennis Ross stressed the importance of civil dialogue. Today, slogans that are thrown around that reflect one’s preferred narrative are substitutes for real thought. These slogans provide heat, not light, that fuels the ongoing flames between individuals caught on opposite sides of this discussion. A difficult aspect of the Israeli Palestinian conflict is that there are two national movements competing for the same space; that both see themselves as the rightful stewards of the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean. In this light, solving the conflict involves the need to reconcile “two rights”, as both Palestinians and Israelis have their identities inextricably tied to the land and have separate, legitimate claims to it. With the knowledge that their futures are intertwined, the main goal is to overcome mutual rejection of each other and face each other through cooperation. October 7th, 2023 was in many ways a return to 1948 and the existential nature of the conflict, reinflicting great wounds for both Israelis and Palestinians. 

Ghaith al-Omari: Al-Omari added that universities in recent years have struggled to platform dialogue on controversial and political issues, and many individuals who lack deeper knowledge on the history of the conflict will state that people will be “fighting forever over there”. However, he stated that this is a ‘cop out’ statement and doesn’t address the fact that the Israeli Palestinian conflict is a modern national and political one, rooted in land and identity. There needs to be an acknowledgement of existence from both Israelis and Palestinians; acceptance is not necessary, but simple acknowledgement of the other and a collective narrative separate from one’s personal beliefs can push the conflict towards a solution. He added that diaspora communities around the world usually hold maximalist views regarding the conflict, largely due to their distance from it. However, Palestinians and Israelis do not have the luxury of holding these extreme views as their lives and futures are connected to each other, for better or worse.

Dennis Ross: The very fabric of Middle East power structures has changed and is continuing to change rapidly since October 7th. Ross stated that The Israeli Defense Forces have transformed the balance of power, severely weakening Hezbollah and Hamas leadership, and conducting precision strikes on Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities. However, Benyamin Netanyahu has no post-war strategy. There is no strategy or endpoint for Gaza: there is no day-after plan for how Gaza should be governed and how to rebuild it for its residents. Ross stated that Israel should have protected the citizens of Gaza with an alternative to Hamas. There needs to be a viable alternative for governance in Gaza that is not Hamas, and Israel holds great responsibility on this front.

Ghaith al-Omari: al-Omari stated that trauma is transformative, and October 7th was the bloodiest moment of the Israeli Palestinian conflict since 1948, independence was celebrated by Israelis yet it was the start of a deep trauma known as al-Nakba (catastrophe) for the Palestinian collective as many lost their homes and were pushed off their land, unable to return. There are forward leaning conversations within the Arab world, especially in the Gulf, where Gulf states are becoming more open to normalization with Israel and collaboration on matters regarding security and scarce resources such as water, but only if the conflict comes to an end.  Some Arab nations such as Jordan have collaborated with Israel since the 90s in security matters, yet remain firm in their policy of backing an end to the occupation in the West Bank and the war in Gaza and a framework for a two-state solution.

Dennis Ross: Ross added since the start of the conflict, Palestinians have never been in a position to make their own decisions. The United States has immense leverage over Israel’s foreign and domestic policy but has yet to apply it in ways that will push the conversation forward. Since October 7th and the start of the current ongoing war in Gaza, there has been immense mutual trauma on both the Israeli and Palestinian sides. However in this situation, people can only feel their pain and the pain of their people, making dialogue difficult. 

It is impossible to ignore the level of death and destruction in Gaza, and building the enclave back will require decades and various partners involved in security, health, and infrastructure. There needs to be a post-Hamas vision for Gaza that is viable, practical, and demilitarized, where the people of Gaza are protected and not at the mercy of a group that uses international aid to build tunnels and rockets over social programs and infrastructure. When there is demilitarization, investment will come, and Arab nations will play a necessary role in this process. A future where Israel and Palestine can cooperate functionally is possible, we are just a long way away from that currently.

Ghaith al-Omari: There needs to be an emphasis of coexistence over resistance in Palestine, and Palestinians need to see themselves as active players in forming a solution. There is a lot of talk about peace and what that means, but really peace is a change in status quo and it is risky. As mentioned, there is no day-after plan. Right now there is a competition of suffering that is not sustainable. There has to be accountability on the Israeli side in regards to their policies in the Gaza Strip. It is not easy to forget the past, but there comes a point where there needs to be a collective moving-on from traumatic pasts in order to bring forth a better future. A utopian future is not the goal, nor realistic, but a pragmatic solution with two nations for two people rooted in real cooperation is powerful.

 

Thank you to Heterodox Academy and the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences for making this talk happen on our campus, and for opening up dialogue on important international matters challenging us today.