The Jordanian option refers to a range of proposals and strategies aimed at resolving the Israeli–Palestinian conflict through the involvement of neighboring Jordan.
Historically, this concept has encompassed various ideas, including Jordan retaking control over parts of the West Bank, establishing a federation or confederation between Jordan and a Palestinian state ("Jordanian option"), or envisioning Jordan as a homeland for Palestinians ("Jordan is Palestine"), implying a resettlement of much of the West Bank's Arab population to Jordan and the Israeli annexation of the territory. The viability and acceptance of the Jordanian option have fluctuated over time, with different leaders and groups either supporting or opposing it at different periods.
The West Bank became a distinct territorial entity when Transjordan (later Jordan) captured it during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Jordan subsequently lost control of the West Bank to Israel during the 1967 Six-Day War. After the war, Israeli leaders, particularly from the Labor Party, contemplated returning a significant portion of the West Bank to Jordan. King Hussein of Jordan supported this approach, and negotiations between him and Israeli representatives were largely focused on this issue, with proposals such as the Allon Plan and the Federation Plan. In 1985, Hussein and PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat formalized a joint position advocating for a Jordanian-Palestinian confederation. The secret Peres–Hussein London Agreement of April 1987 resulted from extensive covert discussions between Israel and Jordan on this matter.
However, in 1988, Hussein renounced Jordanian claims to the West Bank. Although support for the confederation model was expressed by figures such as Shimon Peres and Yasser Arafat in the subsequent decade, Jordanian officials have since opposed this option and endorsed the two-state solution instead. Given the limited success of other proposed solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in some corners there are attempts at reconsidering the Jordanian option as a potential resolution.