The research proposal has its foundation in the concept of a deep-rooted inextricability between histories and lives of the two peoples, Arabs and Jews in the land of Palestine. The belief of a necessary co-existence becomes an essential starting point for the recognition and reconciliation processes in which both peoples are considered enemies and common actors at the same time. In contrast with a socio-political reality developed on fear and hostility against the so-called “Other”, the paper suggests a pluralistic view throughout the different sides as the only future orientation in which the multiplicity of all communities living in Palestine/Israel may be acclaimed along with egalitarian and democratic principles. The study opens with a historical overview of the theoretical idea regarding the inevitability of a co-existence between Arabs and Jews, with particular reference to the works of the main Jewish thinkers such as Hannah Arendt and Martin Buber to the works of the leading Palestinian intellectual Edward W. Said. My proposal aims to discover the meaning of co-existence, through the historical memory pattern, supported by the existing literature and my fieldwork in Israel and in the occupied Palestinian territories. How did Zionism annihilate the design of a unique land for Palestinians and Israelis? And what have been the consequences of Palestinian nationalism? At this point, the presentation will move on from the theoretical discussion to the experimental and data stage and will include a focus on the experience of the Palestinian-Jewish community of Wahat al-Salam – Neve Shalom. Do the two joint historical narratives show in which ways the Zionist ideal and the Palestinian nationalism, each in a different manner, have changed and weakened the prospect of co-existence? In order to try to answer this question I will critically analyze how to deconstruct the subject of the Israeli and Palestinian national/religious identities. In both sides these represent crucial features that have to be de-constructed to achieve a fair and reciprocal reconciliation between Palestinians and Israelis. My objective is to address the notion of post-nationalism from a number of different perspectives, which could prove to be one of the most useful approaches available in rethinking the political implication of co-existence, not only as a rhetorical construction but also as an essential fact in the daily life of the two peoples. By bringing into question one of the core barriers to guaranteeing self-determination, freedom and equality for all citizens, the existence of diverse tragic realities in the collective histories becomes the one aspect able to contrast the dehumanization of the “Other” and lead towards a reconciliation path in a shared land.

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