A Radical Vision for Israelis and Palestinians

What It Covers

Ezra Klein speaks with Mai Pundak and Rula Hardal, co-directors of Land for All — a confederation model founded in 2012 — proposing an alternative to both the two-state and one-state frameworks for Israel-Palestine. The plan centers on two sovereign states with open borders, shared institutions, freedom of residency, and mutual recognition of national belonging across the entire land.

Key Questions Answered

• •Confederation vs. Separation: The Land for All model retains two sovereign states — Israel and Palestine — but replaces the classic separation paradigm with open borders and shared institutions covering public health, economy, climate, water, and a joint human rights court. Citizens retain citizenship and voting rights in their own state while gaining residency rights in the other, decoupling nationality from geographic restriction entirely.
• •Settlements and Right of Return as a Package: Previous negotiations failed partly by excluding the two most politically charged issues — Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Palestinian refugee right of return. Land for All addresses both simultaneously: settlers may remain without legal privilege or control over Palestinians, while refugees gain Palestinian citizenship plus the right to apply for Israeli residency in their families' places of origin from 1948.
• •Security Through Integration, Not Walls: The Gaza perimeter — the most heavily fortified separation barrier Israel built — was where October 7 occurred. Meanwhile, Palestinian citizens inside Israel with greater (though unequal) rights represent a space where coexistence functions daily. The model argues that individual-based security screening at open borders, modeled on EU and Northern Ireland frameworks, produces more durable safety than collective ethnic exclusion.
• •End Game Commitment as Prerequisite: Oslo failed because Israel never formally committed to a Palestinian sovereign state as the definitive outcome. Land for All argues that without an unambiguous, publicly declared end state, spoilers on both sides will always derail incremental steps. Recognition of Palestine by more states — as several did recently — is framed as a necessary precondition to begin any process, not a reward at its conclusion.
• •Narrative Transformation Before Policy: Durable peace requires both societies to revise foundational stories. Israeli Jews need to formally acknowledge the Nakba and its ongoing consequences. Palestinians need to acknowledge the deep psychological and historical fears shaping Israeli behavior — without legitimizing the occupation. Land for All incorporates transitional justice working groups drawing on international experts to build this reconciliation layer into the political framework.
• •Bottom-Up Movement Building as Strategy: Land for All reached 15,000 Israelis in 2025 alone through political imagination workshops, framed as equivalent to half a million Americans in proportional terms. The organization targets young people with entry points focused on hope and agency rather than policy specifics. Standing Together, the largest joint Jewish-Arab grassroots movement in Israel, adopted Land for All's vision for its tenth anniversary, signaling growing civil society alignment.