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
AL-Qadisiya Journal For Law and Political Sciences
Article 41, Volume 16, Issue: 1 part 2, June 2025, Pages 853-888 PDF (1.08 M)
Document Type: Research Paper
DOI: 10.63677/jqlap.2025.187072
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

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