Saudi Journalist Abdulrahman Al-Rashed: The Two-State Solution Is The Most Logical And Feasible Solution; The Arabs Should Agree To A Demilitarized Palestinian State And Pressure On Israel To Accept It

Saudi journalist Abdulrahman Al-Rashed said in an October 1, 2024 episode of the Thmanyah Podcast on YouTube October 1, 2024 that the two-state solution is the most "logical and feasible" solution for the Palestinian cause. He said that the Arabs should agree to a demilitarized Palestinian state with no foreign authorities, which he considers a "very reasonable solution," and thus put the pressure on Israel to accept this agreement. Chairman of Al-Arabiya Network’s Editorial Board and former General Manager of Al Arabiya News Channel. He is also former editor-in-chief of the London-based Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat.

Abdulrahman Al-Rashed: "The two-state solution is the logical and feasible solution. The dispute will be about the details. With regard to the details – one of the aspects of the unfortunate deception in our region has to do with the agreement proposed by [President] Clinton.

"If you read the Arab newspapers back then, they said that Arafat was asked to give up 70% of the West Bank, give up Jerusalem, and hand it over to Israel. But the Ehud Barak-Bill Clinton proposal of that time gave 96-97% of the West Bank to the Palestinian Authority. This was part of the proposal presented by Clinton, which also included most of the Gaza Strip. In exchange, the Palestinian Authority would not have had an army or security capabilities in areas outside its control.

"This was Clinton's proposal, to which [Israeli PM Ehud] Barak agreed. Arafat went there and then when it was time to make a decision, in the last two weeks of Clinton's presidency, he did not go, and sent representatives there instead. They said that they had no power, and all kinds of illogical excuses.

"Clinton said to them: 'Talk  [to Arafat] on the phone.' So they called him from the White House, and he said to them: 'We do not accept his agreement, it's difficult to implement it now. We need a trial period of ten years.' They said to him: 'Impossible. No country has a ten-year trial period. Take it or leave it.' He said he's not taking it. Then he tore the document and left. A short while later, Clinton left office, and the opportunity was lost.

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"I say that a demilitarized state with no foreign authorities is a very reasonable solution, under the circumstances..."

Interviewer: "Will Israel accept it?"

Al-Rashed: "Israel will do everything it can so that there won't be a Palestinian state, in general. This is why it is important that there will be a united Palestinian leadership, which will work with the Arab countries, the countries in the region, and the international superpowers... We need to say that we are ready and accept a demilitarized state. Let the pressure be on Israel."