Draft Resolution on IFLRY Working Group on the Israeli – Palestinian Conflict

The Israel-Palestine Working Group has drafted a resolution on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The draft resolution can be seen below:

1. Security Council Resolution 2250 on Youth, Peace and Security, which recognized the role of young men and women in peacebuilding and countering violent extremism
2. The two-state solution has been the goal of the international community for decades, dating back to the 1947 partition plan;
3. Virtually the entire international community supports a two-state solution. In the Middle East, most countries support the 2002 Arab peace Initiative, put forward by Saudi Arabia. The initiative was adopted unanimously by the Arab League;
4. The most recent round of negotiations fell apart in April 2014 with Israeli and Palestinian leaders blaming each other;
5. Both claim parts, if not all, of the Holy City of Jerusalem as their capital. They dispute where to draw borders and they continue to clash over Israeli settlements in occupied territory;
6. UN Resolution 2334 (December 2016) with 14 out of 15 Delegations in favour of Resolution and only with the abstention of the USA, declared Israeli Settlements illegal according to international law;
7. Basic Human Rights are being infringed by both parties, including, but not limited to the free movement of people, non-intervention, self-determination and non-discrimination;

We conclude that:

1. A negotiating table should be formed by representatives of the governments of the two concerned parties (Israel and Palestine), the Arab League, the USA and the United Nations;
2. A final peace agreement should have as a starting point a two-state solution with the borders previous to the Six-Days War of 1967 and confirmed by UN resolution 2334 of December 2016. It would recognise a 1967 demarcation line known as the ‘Green Line’ to partition Palestinian and Israeli land;
3. During the peace negotiations, whenever possible, a land exchange should be placed on the table. This would allow to minimize the amount of people that would need to leave their homes. For instance, those settlements which are very close to the border should be included within Israeli territory. In exchange, the State of Palestine would receive the equivalent, in terms of quality and quantity, land mass from Israel;
4. Those settlements which are far into Palestinian territory shall be integrated within the new State. Their citizens will always have the choice to return to Israel or live in the new Palestinian State, where their human rights shall always be respected;
5. Jerusalem should be an equally administered International Capital by the two parties and under supervision of the UN, as it was the original idea back in 1948. Two red lines shall be taken into account: The city should never split and access to its holy places shall be guaranteed to all three world religions.
6. Free movement of people: Particularly given the strong historical and emotional ties to the land, citizens of Israel and Palestine ought to have the capacity to move across future trans-national borders.
7. Free Trade: Promote the free exchange of goods and services in the mutual benefit of both parties.
8. Protection of Human Rights: Both parties shall implement the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
9. Protection of minorities in neighbouring countries: Following the belief in the importance of the Declaration of Human Rights, we support the protection of minorities, whether religious, ethnic, gender, or otherwise, in both Israel and Palestine. These protections are among the most important commitments in this process.
10. Economic and social recovery of the most deprived areas: Primary focus shall be placed on education and research, support to the displaced in their new lives, support solidarity schemes amongst territories and the mutual economic recovery. This would include a commitment to transfer of customs duties and VAT products currently collected by Israel for the benefit of the Palestinian territories.