There is no clear resolution in sight when it comes to settling the long-standing dispute between Israel and the Palestinian territories. In fact, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition have taken a hard line against the Palestinian Authority, partially in response to the continued threat of terrorism but also to placate their constituents on the far right. Though Netanyahu's government does not have complete control over the Israeli settlements proliferating in the contested West Bank, it has no intention of amending its settlement policy. Holding the territory between the borders established after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and those drawn after 1967's Six-Day War is part of Israel's defensive strategy. Additionally, relinquishing territory would require Israel to uproot its settlements on the West Bank, along with their inhabitants and established businesses.
The Palestinian Authority, meanwhile, lacks a government coherent enough to agree on a solution to present to Israel. The two most prominent Palestinian political parties, Fatah and Hamas, envision entirely different outcomes for the enduring struggle. Fatah's two-state solution is far too conciliatory for Hamas, which espouses violent opposition to Israel. Since Hamas swept elections in 2006, deep divisions have hamstrung the Palestinian government. The discord between Hamas and Fatah grew to such an extent in 2016 that it derailed scheduled elections. To further complicate matters, the Palestinian Authority is at loggerheads over a succession plan for aging leader Mahmoud Abbas.
Nevertheless, the international community will once again try to force the two parties to meet and hash out their differences in yet more negotiations this year, starting with the Jan. 15 Paris peace conference. Already, the conference has failed in its principal endeavor to coax the two sides of the conflict into the same room to discuss the situation. Prominent Israeli and Palestinian leaders have yet to confirm their attendance, and Israel has dismissed the conference as futile. Israel's borders and settlements are internal issues that only the Israeli government has the power to address. U.N. Security Council resolutions, such as the controversial Dec. 23 measure that declared Israel's settlements in the West Bank illegitimate, will do little to curb Israel's settlement building in the West Bank. The country does not heed nonbinding U.N. resolutions. Similarly, they will not prevent Palestinians from launching retaliatory attacks against the perceived Israeli occupation.
Solutions to the conflict's security and refugee crises will prove equally elusive. Palestinian terrorist attacks are still a pressing concern for Israel, but more and more, the Islamic State and other jihadist groups are competing for the country's attention. As for the rights of generations of Palestinian refugees, a unifying cause for the Arab states since 1967, new refugee populations in the Middle East have pushed the issue to the backburner. And so, prospects are dim for progress on the conflict's main challenges.
