Israel has offered the Palestinians a state of there own on five separate occasions. Each time the Palestinians have rejected the offer. In a PragerU video titled ‘Why Isn’t There a Palestinian State?’ David Brog, Executive Director of the Maccabee Task Force, provides the following breakdown:
- 1914 World War I and the break up of the Ottoman Empire.
- 1918 Britain takes control of the Middle East.
- 1936 Arabs Revolt against the British and the Jews. The British suggest a two-state solution, offering the Arabs a staggering 80% of the disputed land, and the Jews the remaining 20%. The Jews accepted the offer, but the Arabs rejected it.
- 1947 The U.N. voted for a two-state solution. Again, the Jews accepted the offer, but the Arabs rejected it, and launched an all out war. Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon and Syria joined the conflict, but the Jews were victorious.
- 1949 Jordan occupied most of the land set aside by the U.N. for an Arab State, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
- 1967 The Arabs, led by Egypt, Jordan and Syria attempted to destroy the Jewish state. This conflict is known as the Six Day War. Once again, the Jews were victorious and they took control of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
- 1967 The Arab League Summit rejected a two-state solution and issued their three No’s: No peace with Israel; No recognition of Israel; No negotiations with Israel.
- 2000 Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Barak, met with Yasser Arafat to consider a two-state plan. Arafat rejected all offers and the Palestinians launched a series of suicide bombers killing and maiming thousands of Jews.
- 2005 Israel gave the Palestinians control of Gaza. The Palestinians turned it into a terrorist base from which they have fired thousands of rockets into Israel.
- 2008 Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, suggested another two-state solution, offering the Palestinians all of Gaza, 94% of the West Bank, East Jerusalem as its capital, and additional land. Mahmoud Abbas rejected the offer.
What’s the solution? According to Brog: “Each time Israel has agreed to a Palestinian state, the Palestinians have rejected the offer – often violently. So, if you’re interested in peace in the Middle East, maybe the answer is not to pressure Israel to make yet another offer of a state to the Palestinians. Maybe the answer is to pressure the Palestinians to finally accept the existence of a Jewish State.”
