Over the last five years, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has regularly walked into the courtroom where he is being tried for corruption. In November last year, he unsuccessfully sought a presidential pardon.

He is difficult to read—his public mask only deepens the ambiguity. At rest, his intentions and personality remain inscrutable. On the most critical political issue of all—whether to support a two-state solution—he has at times expressed support, yet now rejects it. Instead, he appears committed to maintaining the status quo: expanding Jewish settlements on Palestinian land while denying meaningful political life to the occupied population.

But what his inner calculations are remains unclear.

The Demographic Reality Israel Cannot Ignore

Why can he not see that the status quo is not a viable political goal?

The first reason is demographic. Within less than a decade, Muslims are projected to form a majority in Israeli-controlled territory. By rejecting a two-state solution, Israel is effectively creating a single state encompassing both Jews and Arabs—while denying Palestinians in the West Bank the right to........

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