The Role of Religious Identity in Hindering the Settlement of the Two-State Solution in the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

Hama Ali, Mahdi Abu Bakr

doi:10.63677/jqlap.2025.187072

The Role of Religious Identity in Hindering the Settlement of the Two-State Solution in the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

https://doi.org/10.63677/jqlap.2025.187072

Volume 16, Issue: 1 part 2 - Serial Number 1
Spring 2025

Pages 853-888

AL-Qadisiya Journal For Law and Political Sciences

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Mahdi Abu Bakr Hama Ali

University of Sulaimani – College of Political Science – Department of Political Science

Abstract

From ancient times to the present day, religious identity has remained a fundamental driver in igniting political conflicts and prolonging their duration. While religious differences may not appear as a primary factor in contemporary political disputes, they often serve as an underlying foundation in most of them—even those arising within a single religious framework. In the context of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, religious identity further complicates achieving a political settlement or reconciliation, transforming the idea of a two-state solution into an idealistic goal that is difficult to realize amid ongoing identity-based competition rooted in religion. This complexity is exacerbated by the tendency of political movements—both secular and religious—to leverage religious discourse to bolster their political influence and gain popular legitimacy. This deepens the divide between the Islamic/Palestinian and Jewish/Israeli identities, transforms the conflict into a more violent religious-political confrontation, and gradually distances both sides from any political solution based on peaceful coexistence between two neighboring states.

Keywords

Identity

Religious Identity

Palestinian-Israeli Conflict

Two-State Solution