The Elusive Peace Map: A Lost Opportunity in the Middle East

In 2008, then-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert presented a plan potentially leading to peace with the Palestinians, but the opportunity slipped away.

In a recent documentary, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert revealed the previously unseen map of his proposed two-state solution, a concept perceived as unattainable today. During a meeting on September 16, 2008, he implored Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to consider a plan that proposed creating a Palestinian state over 94% of the occupied West Bank.

The map, now regarded as historical, outlines a detailed territory for Israel, proposing to annex 4.9% of the West Bank, which included key Jewish settlement blocs. In return, Olmert offered to relinquish an equal area of Israeli land along the West Bank and Gaza borders, establishing a connection between the two Palestinian territories through a designated tunnel or highway – a notion that had surfaced in earlier negotiations.

Significantly, Olmert's plan addressed the contentious issue of Jerusalem. The proposal allowed both sides to claim parts of the city as their capitals, while an international committee composed of representatives from Israel, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the US would oversee the administration of the "holy basin," including the sensitive Old City and its sacred sites.

Had this plan been accepted, it would have resulted in massive evacuations of existing Jewish communities in the West Bank, a prospect that posed significant challenges for Olmert's administration, especially following the backlash from the Gaza Strip evacuations in 2005 under former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

Despite the gravity of the offer, when Olmert declined to provide Abbas with the map unless he signed it in that moment, the opportunity was sidetracked. Abbas insisted on showing the map to his advisors to fully grasp the implications before making a commitment. The anticipated follow-up meeting never occurred due to apprehensions from Abbas’s team and Olmert’s ongoing political troubles, culminating in an imminent resignation amidst a corruption scandal.

The withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, coupled with rocket attack escalations, complicated diplomatic efforts, leading to a military offensive known as Operation Cast Lead. As political dynamics shifted with Benjamin Netanyahu’s ascent to power and his opposition to a Palestinian state, Olmert’s proposal faded into obscurity.

Reflecting on the pivotal moment, Olmert still anticipates a response from Abbas but acknowledges that his plan has become part of a long series of missed chances for a resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The phrase "the Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity," coined by former Israeli diplomat Abba Eban in 1973, continues to resonate, revealing the intricate complexities faced by both sides over decades.

Ultimately, it is the intricate interplay of international relations and domestic pressures that has defined the elusive pursuit of peace in the region, as echoed in various negotiations, including those back in 2001, where offers, such as those scribbled on a napkin, pointed towards a feasible solution that remains just out of reach.