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Last week, during a joint speech by American leader Donald Trump and Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the Israeli parliament, fellow lawmaker Ayman Odeh and I raised a banner urging the recognition of the Palestinian state. We were violently removed from the legislative assembly, exposing the weak condition of what's frequently described as the "only democracy in the Middle East". How can leaders speak about regional peace while declining to acknowledge a population deprived of fundamental liberties and entitlements under decades-long military control?

The Situation in the West Bank

Nowhere is the hypocrisy more apparent than in the occupied West Bank. There, talk of peace seem distant and faint, while the terrifying sounds of settler violence and terror continue loudly. Over 30 occurrences of settler aggression against Palestinians have been documented since the unveiling of the US peace proposal in September's end, including physical assaults, stealing of agricultural produce, and torching of cars and property.

Systematic Aggression During Harvest Season

The rise in settler terrorism is deliberate. This time marks the beginning of harvest seasons. Beyond a crucial economic activity, it constitutes an important communal and cultural occasion that demonstrates endurance under military rule. Exactly for these reasons, year after year colonists attack Palestinians throughout this precious time. During the last year's agricultural period, human rights organizations recorded 113 distinct cases of aggression, harassment, harvest-thwarting, or damage to olive groves and produce involving settlers and military personnel, which occurred on lands owned by 51 Palestinian-owned communities, municipalities, and communities.

Israel's military seemed to have had a larger part in obstructing the olive harvest

The human rights group also found that "Israel's security forces seemed to have played a greater role in obstructing the harvesting season". In about 70% of instances where access to lands was violently prevented, troops, border police officers, and settlement civilian security coordinators were physically present. They either directly prevented Palestinians from reaching and gathering their property, or neglected to prevent colonists who threatened or assaulted them.

Political Support for Settler Activities

This comes as no shock, as the head of the settlers' political party, Bezalel Smotrich, was appointed as an additional minister in the Defense Ministry responsible for the territorial coordination unit. In one village, for example, a special COGAT unit uprooted personally-owned olive plants of local residents, claiming missing documentation, but overlooked violations by an unauthorized adjacent colonist encampment. Last week, the Jerusalem district court ruled to stop all building work in the encampment, which was constructed on lands seized by Israeli authorities and unlawfully transferred to colonists.

Annexation Goals and Global Reaction

In the controlled West Bank, settler terrorism is simply a instrument used by the government to achieve practical incorporation. Earlier this month, Smotrich headed a procession of many of settlers in favor of annexation the West Bank. He was reported as stating, "We are continuing to establish presence with our feet of the Land of Israel with numerous pioneers, many heroes, and hundreds of thousands of settlers who live in this area of the territory ... we must to normalize it and establish it permanently."

The settlers and their supporters in the Knesset are clear about their motives and intentions. Why, then, do political leaders in the Western nations hesitate from substantial penalties and diplomatic measures? Smotrich was sanctioned by the UK in the summer, but the effect of the penalty has been minimal. He may not be permitted to travel to the UK and tour the West End, but he still enjoys the governmental authority to take lands in the West Bank. Remarkably in the declaration of penalties, the British government highlighted they take place "personally" solely.

Global Recognition and Reality

If the UK government recognizes the truth of settler violence and its grave consequences on Palestinian existence, why does it still allow settlement produce to be marketed in markets and outlets in Britain? If the British leader is serious about acknowledging Palestinian statehood as a state, how can he permit the Israeli administration to violate its sovereignty with such aggressive methods? Or was the acknowledgment an hollow tactic to silence opposition in the United Kingdom, a hollow act only to be realised in the rebranding of some maps?

Route Toward True Resolution

A just resolution must respect the fundamental entitlements of the Palestinian population for self-determination, independence, and liberty from military occupation and blockade. Only when every person's dignity between the Jordan River and sea is respected can we truly say reconciliation has been achieved.

Genuine peace requires an independent Palestinian state alongside the Israeli state: this is the sole formula that enjoises agreement among the global community, the Palestinian national movement, and the Israeli peace advocates.

Trump may have inflicted influence on Netanyahu to stop 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 globe for the liberation of Palestinian territories, and the unwavering opposition demonstrations within the country, are the actual forces behind this pressure.

It is due to this massive public campaign that a truce has been signed, the hostages freed, and the people of Gaza can enjoy protection from destruction. After the truce arrangement has been signed, it is crucial to keep applying this influence. The world has turned a blind eye to the atrocities in Gaza for too long; it must not repeat the same error in the West Bank.