Palestinians Want a Two-State Solution

Walking amid rubble, Gaza City, September 2026 Dawoud Abu Alkas / Reuters MICHAEL ROBBINS is Director and Co-Principal Investigator at Arab Barometer. JAMAL is Co-Founder and Co-Principal Investigator at Arab Barometer, Dean of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, and Edwards S. Sanford Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton University. MARK TESSLER is Co-Founder and Co-Principal Investigator at Arab Barometer and Samuel J. Eldersveld Professor of Politics at the University of Michigan. Share & Download Print unlock this feature or Sign in. Save Sign in and save to read later Copy This is a subscriber-only feature. or Sign in. Chicago MLA APSA APA Chicago Cite not available at the moment MLA Cite not available at the moment APSA Cite not available at the moment APA Cite not available at the moment This is a subscriber-only feature. or Sign in. In fact, many Palestinians have a clear and realistic vision for the future. Far more of them support a two-state option than any other potential resolution. And Gazans, despite having borne the brunt of destruction over the past three years, tend to be the most pragmatic: an even greater proportion of them are open to a two-state solution than are Palestinians living in the West Bank, and half of Gazans would back Arab states’ normalization of diplomatic ties with Israel as long as the process includes tangible progress toward Palestinian self-determination. Palestinians’ confidence in both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority (PA) has also deeply eroded; they judge that neither faction has secured their safety or improved their lives, and they want political renewal. Strikingly, most Gazans express a wish to stay and help rebuild their devastated homeland rather than emigrate. Gaza’s immediate situation is bleak. The conditions for Palestinians living in the West Bank are deteriorating rapidly. The status quo is not sustainable, despite there being no clear end to conflict in sight. But Palestinians’ own views offer glimmers of hope. Israelis have a chance to choose a new government more committed to negotiation. If such a government and international donors were to pursue a transition that treats Palestinian statehood as a central part of negotiations and recognizes Gazans’ desire for security and legitimate governance, Gazans are ready to compromise, as are many Palestinians in the West Bank. They are willing to work toward a new political order, but it must be just that: new. PALESTINIAN REALISM Last October’s Arab Barometer survey revealed just how desperate conditions had become in both Gaza and the West Bank—a security, economic, and humanitarian crisis that has not improved meaningfully since then.