While their circumstances are obviously different, Israel and South Africa have much in common: both were states created by settlers who succeeded in dominating the much larger indigenous population. Israel (with some remorse) engaged in some ethnic cleansing after 1948, but the Arabs who remained were given political rights and have thrived economically. In South Africa, on the other hand, the government initially dealt with the threat presented by the indigenous population by creating the apartheid system.
My, how times have changed! South Africa, whatever its current flaws, succeeded in eliminating the apartheid system with a minimal level of violence. Israel, on the other hand, appears to be on the path of creating South Africa-style homelands for Palestinians; the only question at this point is whether it will be done by legal means, through annexation, or simply by creating facts on the ground (Netanyahu’s clear preference).
Given the analogy, the question for today is whether it is conceivable that a South African solution can be found for the Palestinians. I doubt it, for two reasons: first, I don’t see a Palestinian Nelson Mandela; and second, the experience of the Holocaust is going to make the Israelis very, very cautious about running risks.