Al Majalla publishes Olmert-Kidwa peace proposal

They also agreed to the creation of a "temporary Arab security presence" to be deployed to Gaza, which would coordinate with the Israeli army and a new Palestinian security force established by the "Council of Commissioners." This initiative aims to achieve "stability" in Gaza and "prevent attacks" on Israel.

The proposal addresses sensitive issues, including the future of Jerusalem, a topic that contributed to the collapse of the Camp David negotiations in 2000. According to the proposal, Israel would retain full control of West Jerusalem and any Jewish neighbourhoods built after 1967; these will be included in the 4.4% annexation. The document states: "All Arab neighbourhoods that were not part of the Israeli municipality of Jerusalem before 1967 will be part of Palestinian Jerusalem, the capital of the State of Palestine. The Old City will be administrated by a trusteeship of five countries, including Israel and Palestine."

Israeli sources have noted that the proposal closely resembles what Olmert presented in September 2008, which included outlining the borders of a Palestinian state and "renouncing sovereignty over the Temple Mount in Jerusalem." It also suggested that, under a peace agreement, the area containing religious sites in Jerusalem would be administrated by a special committee composed of representatives from five countries, including Palestine, the United States, and Israel.

Al Majalla publishes the English text of the Olmert-Kidwa proposal:

Proposal By Former Prime Minister of Israel Ehud Olmert and Former Foreign Affairs Minister of the Palestinian Authority Nasser al-Kidwa

The former Prime Minister of Israel, Mr. Ehud Olmert and the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Palestinian Authority, Mr. Nasser al-Kidwa, agreed to work together to promote the achievement of peace between the Palestinian and Israeli peoples and peace in the Middle East in general through an agreement that provides for the State of Palestine alongside the State of Israel on the basis on 1967 borders living in peace and security on the basis of mutual recognition. They agreed on the territorial solution presented by Mr. Olmert during his term in office, including the annexation of 4.4% of the total territory of the West Bank by Israel in areas to be agreed upon, taking into consideration security and practical issues in exchange for territory of equal size from within the State of Israel. The exchange will include a corridor linking the Gaza Strip and the West Bank as part of the 4.4% exchange to be annexed to the State of Palestine.

The two leaders, recalling the plan presented by US President Biden and UN Security Council Resolution 2735 (2024), recognised the necessity of speedily putting an end to the war in the Gaza Strip, which means achieving a ceasefire; the release of all Israeli hostages in Gaza and the agreed number of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons; a full withdrawal of Israeli forces and the creation of a Palestinian entity to administer and rebuild the Gaza Strip in the form of a Council of Commissioners composed of professional technocrats and not of political representatives. This Council should be organically linked to the PA and, together with the Council of Ministers, should prepare both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip for general elections within 24 to 36 months.

They agreed on the need for the deployment of a Temporary Arab Security Presence (TASP) in coordination with the withdrawal of Israeli forces to stabilise the situation in cooperation with the Palestinian security force that should be established by the Council of Commissioners. The Temporary Arab Security Presence will be mandated to prevent attacks against Israel from Gaza. Both leaders expressed hope that all this would be acceptable to concerned Arab parties. Finally, they agreed on the need for a Donors Conference to rebuild the Gaza Strip with the serious participation of wealthy countries.

Jerusalem, the capital of the State of Israel, will include all the parts of Jerusalem that were in Israel prior to June 5, 1967, in addition to the Jewish neighbourhoods built after June 1967 in Jerusalem. The Jewish neighbourhoods built after June 1967 will be included in the 4.4% of the Israeli annexation. All of the Arab neighbourhoods that were not part of the Israeli Jerusalem municipality prior to 1967 will be part of Jerusalem, the capital of the State of Palestine. The Old City of Jerusalem will be administered by a trusteeship of five states, of which Israel and Palestine are part. The Trusteeship will have authority in all areas according to rules defined by the UN Security Council. In this regard, the two leaders recognise the special historic role of the King of Jordan. There would be no limitations to worship or movement in the Holy Basin. Jews, Muslims and Christians will have the freedom of access to their Holy Sites, respectively. No one country will have exclusive political sovereignty in the Holy Basin.

The Palestinian state will be a non-militarised state except for the need for its internal policing – security force.

The two leaders call on relevant parties on both sides, with the help of concerned countries, to negotiate additional important elements of a final agreement, such as the status of settlements and settlers, refugees and additional security measures, including the possible stationing of an international force alongside the Jordan River. The official representatives of the parties should adopt these issues towards a comprehensive agreement.

**This is a direct translation from Arabic**