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Canada. My opinion is that both sides are extremely annoying and childish. I don't favour either Palestine or Israel, because it's nothing more than a ****ing contest to me, and one side will probably always be upset about the demarcation were they to ever draw a clear and permanent border.
This is not in line with most Canadians' views of Israel/Palestine, because most Canadians I know are too busy being fascinated by shiny lights and fast-moving objects to be aware of the conflict in any significant sense.
My view: I don't side with either but I do think a huge mistake was made when they went against all logic, plans and resolutions and did not create a country of "Palestine" alongside Israel in 1948.
So sure, Israel is a legitimate country and should continue to exist. But Palestinians should also have their own country.
My countrymen's view: Generally Canadians don't side with the Israelis or the Palestinians. Most probably have a view similar to mine.
Of the people who do take sides, where I live in Quebec people are more likely to support the Palestinians than other Canadians are. There are a few reasons for this. Anti-Semitism is not an issue here and has not been for quite some time, but there is probably a bit of latent suspicion of Israel and Jews that comes from our history. Which means few people in Quebec (unless they are Jewish themselves) are willing to say "Israel can do no wrong" and give them a blank cheque. This mindset exists in the rest of Canada much more, and was pretty much the official policy of the previous Canadian government.
Also, people in Quebec tend to go for the little guys, as they see themselves as little guys. So this means people in Quebec are more sympathetic to Palestinians, Scots, Catalans, Tibetans and people who challenge established régimes or (perceived) stronger adversaries.
I was born before WW II in the U.S., a gentile. No one in my family questioned the creation of Israel, and I never heard an anti-Israel remark. The rare references in public secondary school were positive. My best friend in h.s. was one of two Jews in the secondary school, had there been negative remarks he and his family would certainly have talked about it. I arrived at adulthood being pro-Israel, though it was not a cause that preoccupied me. It was a built-in, unquestioned reflex.
In my fifties I began to read histories of the area, and later I lived on the fringe of the Levant for three years, and read and heard considerably more. My feelings changed.
I don't feel that after a 1,800 year absence from Judea and the lack of a substantial Jewish population in that area during that time that there is any reasonable basis for the creation of a Jewish "homeland" there. Nor do I have a scrap of belief that the Jews have a divine lease on the territory. Judea became a country of Greeks, Syrians, Romans, etc. and then Arabs as well. Obviously Zionists would not, and cannot, agree to these facts.
The project of Zionism was a colonial project of European Jews, and one goal for most Zionist was to oust the current population. After substantial immigration prior to WW II, and massive immigration after and the proclamation of a Jewish state the fact whether this new Israel is historically justifiable or not is moot, there is a nation of Jews there now. And that is the fact that has to be accepted and one of the entities to be dealt with. Might does make right in real world, and extremely generous aid and political support from the U.S. continue to bankroll that position.
I don't find it surprising that Palestinians do not accept this state of affairs, and that many will oppose it with force for many decades to come. I don't find it surprising that other peoples in the area do not accept it.
A two-state solution will not happen because Israel does not want it to happen. But many Palestinians have no interest in it either, and I expect that support for it will very soon be a losing political stance for any Palestinian politician.
On the surface a one-state entity of some sort might seem the fairest bottom line. It is not going to happen because it means the end of the Israeli racial state, which is the bedrock of Zionism; furthermore, the Palestinians would soon outnumber Jews in any single state.
I see two futures. The first - and undoubtedly most intelligent - "I don't know."
The second: Israel becomes so threatened by terrorist attacks from many sources that it launches an aggressive, heavily destructive war of weaponry against surrounding countries, perhaps including some nuclear weapons. Mass slaughter and ruthless depopulation drives will be employed closer to Israel itself. The U.S. will get involved in "defending" Israel, whether they actually need it or not, and the conflict will become ever more widespread and complicated. And the outcome on all sides will make WW II look like a tea dance.
Where I live at present almost no one ever mentions the topic, and I think I am correct is saying that when people have they usually express negative feelings about both sides.
Here in the USA most people regardless of political views are very Pro Israel. Muslim world is generally very anti Israel..
Where do you live and what is your view and the most common view of people in your area on this conflict?
I pay no attention whatsoever. The conflict has been raging for years and will probably not stop anytime soon. Moreover, we can't really believe what we read in the media or anything our government tells us, so why even think about it?
When I do think about it, I think that the Israeli lobby has done a good job of stirring up trouble over the years and that, but for the oil in the region, no one would care what happens.
I think Palestine deserves to be a country.
But in general this never-ending conflict doesn't interest me that much. Too much hatred on both sides, too much negativism.
It's not a big topic of discussion here in Belarus either.
Palestine should be its own country. If that situation is not possible, there should be a federal state with quotas for every ethnicity and religious groups in parliament and other political and economical public organisation. In both cases Jerusalem would become it's own city state
I don't know what should be done regarding Gaza though. In Europe the left and the center widely support Palestine while the right is usually torn over such issues
I forgot to add that it really isn't a priority in foreign politics and even though it was more at the center of public attention in the past, barely anyone cares now. Libya and Syria are the main talking points here.
Anyway, according to most polls, most people support Palestinian independence, especially left wingers.
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