Janet

To understand this issue we should first take into account that it's a very complex one and it is difficult or even dangerous to make generalizations. Religious, racial, and ethnic issues are very particular; they vary from one conflict to another.

Segregating people into homogeneous communities, creates a setup for conflict between groups. Maybe within a single nation there would be more peace, but internationally it would cause more conflict because of the magnification of the differences between groups.

The Israeli and Palestinian hostilities exemplify a conflict between two generally homogeneous groups that is based on deep-seated resentments regarding religion and history. This creates a situation that is so volatile that the two groups are likely to engage in violence whenever they encounter one another. This is why Israel is building a 425-mile long wall of separation. The Ottoman Empire also represents an attempt to provide a stable political environment based on the coexistence of numerous homogeneous religious groups. But differences increased over time, and the separate religious communities became nationalist ones. Religious affiliation surpassed religious belief in importance.

You cannot force people who don't like each other to live together, but creating separate homogeneous communities is not the solution.