7. Complete the Security Barrier

The security barrier, built in the midst of the Second Intifada as a way to prevent the onslaught of Palestinian suicide terrorism inside of Israeli cities, has gaps totalling 39 kilometers, most prominently opposite Ma’ale Adumim and Gush Etzion. These gaps, some due to sections that were never built and some broken due to years of neglect and criminal activity, allow tens of thousands of Palestinians to enter Israel illegally every day and have become infiltration routes into Israel and smuggling routes for weapons back into the West Bank. The wave of terrorism in spring 2022 was directly connected to the gaps in the barrier as well, as many of the attackers entered Israel through these gaps. The planned route of the barrier in these places must be adjusted so as to avoid charges that the barrier is a land grab rather than a legitimate security measure, and the unbuilt sections must be constructed immediately in order to shore up Israel’s defenses against terrorism and crime. Only by taking security seriously, rather than eroding it due to pressure from settlement expansionists and out of neglect, will a two-state solution be viable.