In September 2025, as the war in our homeland continued to take an unimaginable toll in blood and destruction, a group of young Israelis and Palestinians traveled to the Italian island of Ventotene. We chose this location for a reason.
During the darkest days of World War II, political prisoners on this very island wrote a manifesto envisioning a united, federal Europe. They proved that even from the ashes of a devastating conflict, a new reality based on partnership, not endless war, could be born.
We arrived broken. As Israelis, we carried the painful scars of the October 7 trauma – a day that completely destroyed our basic sense of security. As Palestinians, we brought the heavy weight of an ongoing reality defined by endless destruction, widespread grief, and a completely blocked political and personal future, shaped by decades of military occupation and dispossession.
In this impossible reality, when the gap between our societies had never felt deeper, it felt almost impossible to imagine a shared future.
Yet, inspired by the history of the island around us, something deep changed. The experience of meeting the other side, face to face during the deepest pain of our peoples – and still managing to connect and listen – proved that our shared humanity can win. We argued and disagreed, but by resolving most of them, we became more inspired and determined than ever.
Meeting other side gave rise to Young Federalists movement
From that breaking point, we realized one simple, clear truth: Both of our nations share a deep historical and national connection to this land, and neither of us is going anywhere. This realization gave rise to the Young Federalists movement and the Federal Charter we wrote together.
Now, as the public prepares to head to the polls, the political arena is painfully empty of real vision. Candidates running for office offer us nothing but endless wars and zero political solutions. They promise only a never-ending cycle of bloodshed and conflict management that has led us straight into a disaster.
At the same time, the election debate traps us in a false choice: absolute separation that requires huge walls, endless military control, and deepens hatred, or a forced unity in a single state that threatens to erase our unique national identities. We refuse to cast our ballots for these failed ideas.
The upcoming elections in both Israel and Palestine must not just be about replacing politicians; they must be about replacing the entire paradigm.
The only practical path forward is an Israeli-Palestinian federal framework based on absolute equality, mutual recognition, and the principle of non-domination.
Most importantly, this model breaks away from past failed agreements. It does not push questions of rights and equal sovereignty into an unknown future, but builds strict non-domination and equality from day one.
Our vision proposes a political and civic union of two independent states, Israel and Palestine, based on the internationally recognized 1967 borders, with a united Jerusalem serving as the shared capital.
At the heart of our Federal Charter is the promise that neither state will ever control the other demographically, politically, or economically. Instead of walls and checkpoints that strip away daily human dignity, we imagine a shared space that guarantees freedom of movement for all.
Shared federal institutions with equal representation will manage our macro-economy, establishing economic unity (as promised in the 1947 UN Resolution 181), along with the joint management of natural resources and the defense of our outside borders.
At the same time, both Israel and Palestine will keep full sovereignty over their internal affairs, including education, culture, and civil law.
Security will shift from a system of separate, hostile defense to one of regional partnership. A joint federal command will focus strictly on regional defense, ensuring military forces are never again used against civilians.
This framework does not try to erase historical memory or ignore ongoing trauma. Instead, it provides a structural guarantee against future control, oppression, and dispossession.
Charter to be presented at joint Israeli-Palestinian event
This October, we will publicly present our charter at a joint event bringing together 100 Israeli and Palestinian peace activists. Federalism is not an unrealistic dream; it is a detailed political and civic roadmap that offers true security through mutual partnership.
As voters and citizens, it is time to stop managing the conflict and start building a home together.
Will we choose to keep bleeding in a cycle of endless revenge led by leaders with no vision, or will we finally dare to choose a federal alternative that guarantees security, dignity, and a prosperous future for both peoples? The choice is in our hands.
The writers are the co-leaders of The Young Federalists, a joint Israeli-Palestinian grassroots movement advocating for a federal political framework.