The Historical Linkage: Israel's Legitimacy and the Idea of Partition

In recent years the question of Israel's international legitimacy has become an issue of vibrant public debate in Israel itself and in the courts of international public opinion. The post-1967 situation, the occupation and extensive settlement of the West Bank, have called into question Israel's genuine commitment to partition, and have consequently steadily challenged its legitimacy in the international arena. Here, Susser argues that from the early years of the Zionist movement, the idea of a Jewish polity in Palestine was consistently tied in the eyes of the international community to some form of shared entitlement to the country, for both Jews and Arabs. These, initially vague, notions gradually evolved into the more concrete and clearly formulated idea of partitioning Palestine into two states.