In this ground-breaking, authoritative book, noted conflict resolution expert and peacemaker Padraig O’Malley argues that a two-state solution is no longer a viable path to peace in Israel and Palestine Israel and Palestine have remained gridlocked for decades over final borders, Jerusalem, settlements and refugees. In order to break this stalemate, negotiators would need to overcome not just these practical issues, but the complex psychological factors that make it impossible for the two peoples to find common ground. These include irreconcilable national narratives, deadly complacency, and the corrosive mistrust developed over decades of failed negotiations—failures for which each side blames the other. These factors would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to overcome, O’Malley argues, especially as Hamas and even more extreme jihadist groups gain ground in Palestine and Jewish Israelis shift further to the right. Even if these psychological factors were overcome, the gridloc...

About the Author

Padraig O’Malley is the John Joseph Moakley Distinguished Professor of Peace and Reconciliation at the McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies, University of Massachusetts Boston. He has spent his career helping to resolve conflicts around the world, and has written extensively on the subject, including the books Shades of Difference: Mac Maharaj and the Struggle for South Africa an...