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Is an Israel-Palestine two-state solution possible?
Is a two-state solution still possible for Israel and Palestine? Ehud Barak weighs in.
On GZERO World, Ian Bremmer sits down with former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak to discuss the ongoing war with Hamas, the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and whether the idea of a two-state solution with Palestine is still realistic. Barak participated in the 2000 Camp David summit with Yasser Arafat and has arguably come closer than any Israeli leader in modern to securing peace, though he ultimately failed.
“I’ve never lost sight of the idea that the only viable, long-term solution for this conflict in the Middle East remains, unfortunately, the two-state solution,” Barak tells Bremmer.
Today, Barak is critical of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s policies of tacitly viewing Hamas in Gaza as an asset and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank as a liability, instead of the other way around. He also admits that they should have gotten more humanitarian aid into Gaza sooner, but argues that the goal of destroying Hamas is critical for Israel’s future. Ultimately, he says the 240 estimated hostages still being held captive should be prioritized above all else, and that failing rescue them would amount to “abandonment” by the Israeli government.
Watch GZERO World with Ian Bremmer every week online and on US public television. Check local listings.
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Will Israel's war with Hamas spread north to Lebanon?
In Beirut, a little over 50 miles from the Israeli border, there are few signs of the violent conflict capturing the world's attention. At least for now. Further south, there have been almost daily exchanges of rocket fire between the Israeli Defense Forces and Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group that dominates southern Lebanon and is a regional power in its own right.
Fear is growing, even in the north, that the war between Israel and Hamas could spill over into a broader regional conflict, GZERO's Fin DePoncier reports from Beirut. But Lebanon is reeling from its own internal struggles–It suffered a devastating economic collapse in 2019 that was exacerbated by the 2020 pandemic and a deadly explosion at the Port of Beirut that caused billions in damage. It's also politically paralyzed; its divided parliament hasn't been able to elect a president since Michel Aoun left office in 2022.
DePoncier is in Beirut to hear from its diverse population about what they think about their country's precarious position and what it would mean if Lebanon gets dragged into Israel's war with Hamas. Some people see themselves as entirely removed from the conflict, others would pick up arms to fight, but everyone is bracing for the worst. For now, all eyes are on Hezbollah and the southern border.
Watch more about the situation in the Middle East on the upcoming episode of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer.
Catch GZERO World with Ian Bremmer every week at gzeromedia.com/gzeroworld and on US public television. Check local listings.
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Israel at war
Israel is once again at war, with fighting raging to a level not seen in half a century. As of this taping, Israel’s death toll from October 7th’s Hamas terrorist attack has risen to 1,300, with an estimated 150 people believed to be held hostage in Gaza. And so far, according to health officials there, at least 1,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and thousands more injured. Among the Israeli—as well as international—dead from Saturday’s attack are women, children, and the elderly—many butchered in their homes by rampaging Hamas fighters. And Israeli airstrikes have targeted normally safe structures like schools, hospitals, and mosques, killing women, children, and the elderly as well.
On the show this week, Avi Mayer, editor-in-chief of the Jerusalem Post, joins from Israel to talk about how his life, and those of his fellow Israelis, have been forever changed in the past few days. He also provides a pained but unflinching take on how Israel should respond and what that response might mean for the Palestinians caught in the crosshairs.
Then, Middle East scholar Shibley Telhami joins from the Washington DC area to talk about the broader geopolitical context of this latest conflict. Why did Hamas choose this moment to launch its attack, and how did a burgeoning diplomatic deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia play into that decision? Also, what will happen to the 2.3 million Gazans with nowhere to go?