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Last Monday, during a combined speech by US President Donald Trump and Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, fellow parliamentarian Ayman Odeh and I raised a banner calling for the recognition of Palestine. We were forcibly removed from the parliamentary assembly, revealing the weak state of what's frequently described as the "sole democratic state in the Middle East". How can leaders speak about regional peace while refusing to recognize a people deprived of fundamental liberties and rights under decades-long military control?

The Situation in the Occupied West Bank

In no place is the deceit more apparent than in the occupied West Bank. There, talk of peace sound remote and weak, while the frightening echoes of settler violence and terror continue loudly. More than 30 incidents of settler aggression against Palestinians have been recorded since the announcement of the US peace proposal in late September, featuring attacks, stealing of agricultural produce, and burning of cars and belongings.

Systematic Aggression During Harvest Season

The rise in settler terrorism is deliberate. This time marks the beginning of harvest seasons. More than a vital economic event, it represents an important social and cultural moment that shows resilience under occupation. Exactly for these causes, annually settlers target Palestinian farmers throughout this crucial period. During the 2024 harvest period, human rights organizations documented 113 separate cases of violence, harassment, harvest-thwarting, or destruction to olive trees and crops by settlers and soldiers, which occurred on territories owned by 51 Palestinian-owned communities, municipalities, and communities.

Israeli security forces appeared to have had a greater role in obstructing the olive harvest

Yesh Din also found that "Israeli military seemed to have played a greater part in obstructing the harvesting season". In about 70% of cases where access to lands was violently blocked, troops, border guards, and settlement security officials were physically present. They either directly prevented Palestinian farmers from accessing and harvesting their property, or failed to prevent colonists who threatened or attacked them.

Political Support for Colonization

This is no surprise, as the head of the colonists' political movement, Bezalel Smotrich, was named as an additional official in the Ministry of Defence responsible for the territorial coordination unit. In one village, for example, a special COGAT unit uprooted private olive plants of local residents, claiming lack of permits, but overlooked violations by an unauthorized nearby colonist encampment. Last week, the Jerusalem district court ruled to stop all construction in the outpost, which was built on lands taken by Israel and unlawfully transferred to colonists.

Annexation Goals and International Reaction

In the controlled West Bank, colonist violence is nothing but a instrument used by the administration to pursue de-facto annexation. Recently, Smotrich headed a march of many of settlers in favor of annexation the West Bank. He was quoted as stating, "We persist to take hold with our presence of the Land of Israel with numerous settlers, many champions, and countless of colonists who reside in this part of the territory ... we need to normalise it and establish it permanently."

The colonists and their supporters in the parliament are clear about their motives and intentions. Why, then, do government officials in the Western nations refrain from substantial penalties and political actions? Smotrich was penalized by the UK in June, but the effect of the sanction has been minimal. He may not be able to travel to the United Kingdom and visit the West End, but he still enjoys the governmental authority to seize territories in the West Bank. Even in the announcement of sanctions, the British government emphasized they apply "in his personal capacity" solely.

International Recognition and Actual Situation

If the British administration acknowledges the reality of settler violence and its serious implications on Palestinian life, why does it still allow settlement produce to be marketed in markets and outlets in Britain? If the British leader is serious about recognition of Palestine as a state, how come he permit the Israeli administration to violate its independence with such aggressive methods? Or was the acknowledgment an hollow ploy to shut down opposition in the United Kingdom, a meaningless gesture only to be implemented in the relabeling of some maps?

Route Toward Genuine Peace

A fair resolution must respect the basic entitlements of the Palestinian population for self-recognition, independence, and freedom from military occupation and siege. Only when each person's dignity across the river and sea is honored can we genuinely declare reconciliation has been attained.

True peace demands an sovereign Palestinian state next to the Israeli state: this is the only solution that enjoises agreement among the international community, the Palestinian national movement, and the Israeli peace advocates.

Trump may have inflicted pressure on the Israeli leader to halt the genocide, but he probably only did so because the burden of his relationship with the pariah regime of Netanyahu had become excessive. The large demonstrations across the world for the freedom of Palestine, and the unwavering anti-government protests within Israel, are the real factors behind this pressure.

It is due to this enormous public campaign that a ceasefire has been agreed, the hostages released, and the residents of Gaza can experience safeguard from annihilation. After the truce arrangement has been signed, it is vital to keep applying this influence. The international community has turned a blind eye to the atrocities in Gaza for too long; it must not repeat the same mistake in the occupied territories.