In 2048, Israel will celebrate its first century as an independent state. Seen from today’s perspective, the future appears mostly bleak. Israel’s conflict with the Palestinians seems less solvable than ever, while the Arab neighborhood is in complete turmoil, taken over by a violent struggle of identities between extremist Muslim fundamentalists, dictatorial military rulers and a more pragmatic but disorganized young generation. Terror and executions contrast with social networks as the languages of the day. Hostility toward the West, the United States and Israel is rampant. At the same time, the Israeli government is firming up its hold on the West Bank through an aggressive settlement expansion policy, preventing any possibility of a two-state solution. Gaza, meanwhile, is witnessing dangerous radicalization following its devastation in last year’s war with Israel and struggles between Hamas and more radical Islamist forces.
Israel’s international position is at an all-time low. The world rejects Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, considering it a form of neocolonialism. Relations with Washington are in severe crisis in regard to an eventual nuclear agreement with Iran and its policy in favor of Palestinian statehood. Domestically, Israel suffers from a severe social and ethical crisis, threatening its cohesion and its democratic fabric. The rift between rich and poor, center and periphery, religious and secular, Jews and Arabs, keeps growing, while the current government initiates legislations that curtail the rights of minorities. Many young Israelis seek their future in the German capital Berlin, of all places. Thus, Israel’s horizon seems cloudy, at best.
