Conclusion

Just as it is a fact that world peace is the greatest need of our time, it is also a fact that world peace cannot be achieved without the establishment of peace in Palestine. I believe that the time has come for the prediction of the Prophet to come true about the establishment of peace in Palestine and, in consequence, in the rest of the world.

Inspired by this tradition of the Prophet Muhammad, I wanted to discover the formula for peace in the light of the Islamic scriptures. This study brought me to the conclusion that according to the Quran the master principle in controversial matters is that of reconciliation (sulh). It means that peaceful settlement is the best. However, peaceful settlement is not an easy task. It requires great wisdom, the spirit of give and take, unbiased thinking, a realistic approach, and well-wishing towards all mankind.

Guided by this Quranic spirit, I discovered the first pointer, in the form of the law of diaspora. This law is mentioned in this verse of the Quran, “O my people! Enter the holy land which God has assigned for you.” The ‘promised land’ in the Bible, is called the ‘assigned land’ in the Quran. According to this law, any community living in diaspora enjoys the natural right to return to its original homeland. The Balfour plan, implemented in 1948, expressed exactly the same principle. But the refusal of the Arab leaders to accept it has resulted in a bloody conflict between the two groups. Now the time has finally come for a reassessment to be made by both of the parties. The Arab leaders—abandoning all kinds of violence—must accept Israel as a legitimate state, while Israel must make some kind of territorial adjustment which would be acceptable to the Arabs.

The Arabs regard the Jews as their enemies and are fighting with them. But the Quran tells us that the enemy is our potential friend. This potential friendship, therefore, has to be turned into a reality.

Thus, according to the Quranic principle, what is required in such a case is enmity management, rather than fighting.

The Arabs say that they want peace, and they want peace with justice. But they must know that justice is not a part of peace. Justice can be achieved only through one’s own efforts. Peace only opens the door of opportunities, and by availing of these opportunities, one can achieve the desired justice.

A practical example of this policy in the life of the Prophet is found in the form of the Hudaybiyya agreement. It was an agreement meant to ensure peace. To finalize this agreement, the Prophet accepted all the conditions laid down by the opposite party. This peace agreement opened up all kinds of opportunities, and by availing of these opportunities, the Prophet was able to achieve everything he wanted to achieve.

In Islam, peace is the summum bonum. Therefore, Muslims must adopt a peaceful course of action, rather than a violent course of action. According to this principle, suicide bombing is quite unacceptable in the Islamic scheme of things.

Islam advocates result-oriented action. Any action that fails to yield a positive result is against the spirit of Islam.

The Quran advocates seeking a common ground between the two parties. Such common ground can be found in both the religious and the secular fields.

In the present situation, the Arabs and the Jews can both make progress by adopting this piece of wisdom. They can work together in the fields of education, agriculture, horticulture, etc. In this way, they can channelize their energies towards construction, instead of destruction.

Now we are living in an age of democracy—a system of power-sharing. By adopting this system, the Arabs and Jews in this region can become political partners on an equal basis. This would be a win-win situation for both the parties. And there can be no better situation than this.