💥 Gaza Conflict Reignites Debate Over Decades-Old Peace Plan
Could the horrors of the Gaza war actually revive hopes for a two-state solution? 🤔 As global leaders double down on calls for Palestinian-Israeli coexistence, economists and historians are revisiting a 35-year-old blueprint for peace – complete with economic roadmaps and hard lessons from failed negotiations.
Roll credits to 1988: The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) stunned the world by accepting Israel’s existence during the first intifada. Their “Declaration of Independence” demanded liberation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza – “the 22% we never gave up on,” says Raja Khalidi of the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute.
📉 The Viability Puzzle: Can Economics Save Peace?
Early studies revealed harsh truths: A Palestinian state needed total Israeli withdrawal to attract investors and ensure sovereignty. But the 1993 Oslo Accords delivered “sub-sovereign state-building” instead – think checkpoints, settlements, and a fragmented economy 🧩. By 2000, Camp David talks collapsed, sparking a violent second intifada and deepening divisions.
Fast forward to 2024: With Gaza in ruins and Palestinian leadership split, experts argue economic stability remains key. “No investor trusts half-measures,” Khalidi notes. But with U.S., Arab, and Palestinian officials now echoing the two-state mantra, could this be history’s ultimate comeback story? 🌱
