Part of a series on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict |
Israeli–Palestinian peace process |
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The one-state solution is a proposed approach to resolving the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, according to which one state would be established in former Mandatory Palestine. Proponents of this solution advocate a single state encompassing the currently recognized state of Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.[1][2] The term one-state reality describes the belief that the current situation in Israel/Palestine is de facto a single state.[3] The one-state solution is sometimes also called a bi-national state, owing to the hope that the state would be a homeland for both Jews and Palestinians.
Various models have been proposed for implementing the one-state solution.[4] One such model is the unitary state, which would comprise a single government on the entire territory with citizenship and equal rights for all residents, regardless of their ethnicity or religion,[4] similar to Mandatory Palestine. Some Israelis advocate a version of this model in which Israel will annex the West Bank but not the Gaza Strip and remain a Jewish and democratic state with a larger Arab minority.[5] A second model calls for Israel to annex the West Bank and create an autonomous region for the Palestinians there.[4] A third model involves creating a federal state with a central government and federative districts, some of which would be Jewish and others Palestinian.[5][6] A fourth model, described by A Land for All, involves a confederation in which independent Israeli and Palestinian states share powers in some areas, and Israelis and Palestinians have residency rights in each others' nations.[7][8]
Though increasingly debated in academic circles, the one-state solution has remained outside the range of official diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict, where it is eclipsed by the two-state solution. According to the most recent Palestine/Israel Pulse survey in 2023, support for a democratic one-state solution stands at 23% among Palestinians and 20% among Israeli Jews. A non-equal non-democratic one-state solution remains more popular among both populations, supported by 30% of Palestinians and 37% of Israeli Jews.[9] A Palestinian poll conducted in September 2024 revealed that only 10% of respondents supported a single state that would provide equal rights for both Jews and Palestinians.[10]