Until Israelis and Palestinians see beyond a ‘faceless enemy’, there can be no peace | Samir El-Youssef

Each side must realise it has dehumanised the other to the extent that extremes of violence have been justified

One question has been frequently asked since the beginning of the Hamas-Israel war: What will happen when hostilities end in Gaza?" And the only positive answer thus far has been a call to resume peace negotiations endorsing a two-state solution. This solution, it's been claimed, is the only way to prevent what happened on and since 7 October from ever happening again.

The hope of establishing a Palestine state alongside the existing state of Israel is not impossible to achieve as long as sincere efforts are made by all concerned parties. According to Gordon Brown, such hope was actually within inches of being reached during his premiership in 2008. But would that have been sufficient to bring about a lasting solution?