At the heart of the conflict in the Middle East is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Unlike most American politicians running for public office who express their position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflicts, my views on the issue come from a deep, personal connection and experience.

My father was born in Palestine and fought in the Israeli underground. I lived in Israel for seven years, during which I was involved, as a teen-ager and young man, in the fledgling peace movement. I went through the 1973 Yom Kippur war—a cousin was killed in the war and his brother was wounded. Half my family lives there, some within a few miles of the West Bank border.

So, it is absolutely clear to me that only a two-state solution will end the violence that has taken so many Palestinian and Israeli lives—and bring stability and peace to the Middle East.

I unequivocally support the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and all of the Gaza Strip, consequently ending Israeli occupation of these areas because such a solution is the only way to ensure Israeli security. The final peace settlement has to accommodate Israel’s security requirements but it also has to ensure a viable, thriving, independent Palestinian State which has territorial contiguity and is not broken into cantons.

I also lived in Jerusalem and still remember what a beautiful city it is. Its special nature, though, is the role it plays in the spiritual lives of Judiasm, Islam and Christianity. Jerusalem should always be the capital of Israel—but a negotiated settlement must include a plan that allows Israelis and Palestinians to share the city because Palestinians make up one-third of the city’s residents and have historic and long-standing political, economic, and religious ties to the city. A Palestinian capital in Arab areas of Jerusalem will not threaten the city’s role as the capital of Israel.

Violence is not the answer for either side. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict must be resolved via negotiated, non-violent means. Both peoples have suffered from the bloodshed. Yet, clear majorities of both peoples say they want a peaceful settlement of the conflict. A credible negotiating track, linked with a bi-lateral effort to ensure security and stop the violence, is the only path to a long-lasting settlement.

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