‘Support growing for two-state solution’

Hebrew University poll finds that 58% of Israelis and 50% of Palestinians support the 2001 Clinton Parameters.

By MELANIE LIDMAN
Clinton, Barak, Arafat at Camp David 311 (photo credit: REUTERS/Win McNamee)
Clinton, Barak, Arafat at Camp David 311
(photo credit: REUTERS/Win McNamee)
Israelis and Palestinians are inching closer to agreeing on a two-state solution based on the Clinton Parameters, according to the yearly Hebrew University Joint Israeli-Palestinian Public Opinion Poll released Wednesday.
According to the poll, 58 percent of Israelis and 50% of Palestinians supported the Clinton Parameters in 2011, compared with 47% of Israelis and 39% of Palestinians in 2003, the first year of the poll.RELATED:6 in 10 Palestinians reject 2-state solution, survey findsUS rejects Arab League support for PA statehood bid
The Clinton Parameters, devised in the administration of former US president Bill Clinton, call for compromises in six fundamental issues: final borders and territorial exchange, refugees, sovereignty over Jerusalem, a demilitarized Palestinian state, final security arrangements and an end of armed conflict.
Most significantly, Jerusalem will be divided, and east Jerusalem, along with most of the Old City, save for the Jewish Quarter and the Western Wall, will become the Palestinian capital. Also, Israel will withdraw from all of the West Bank except for major settlement blocs consisting of about 3% of the West Bank, and there will be an equal territorial exchange for land inside Israel.
Among Palestinians, 63% support a territorial exchange based on these parameters, compared to 51% of Israelis.
Palestinians and Israelis feel similarly uncomfortable with the suggestion for Jerusalem’s future, with only 40% of Palestinians and 38% of Israelis supporting those borders.
Support grew for an end to the armed conflict with the implementation of the Clinton Parameters, with 63% of Palestinians and 70% of Israelis expressing their support for an end to violence, an increase of 2% for Israelis and 5% for Palestinians over last year.
The poll also found Israelis and Palestinians are equally split on whether or not Israel will attack Iran’s nuclear weapon program: 47% of Israelis supported a strike against Iran, and 48% of Palestinians said they believed Israel would strike Iran.
The poll was conducted by the Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace, and the Department of Communication and Journalism, at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and included 1,270 Palestinian respondents and 600 Israeli respondents.
Despite the fact there is actually support of at least 50% on both sides for the Clinton parameters, both sides do not believe that others in their society or on the other side support these suggestions. Only 34% of Israelis estimate that a majority in their society supports this package, and 55% of Israelis think the majority of Palestinians will support it.