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Last week, during a joint speech by American leader Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, fellow lawmaker Ayman Odeh and I displayed a sign urging the acknowledgment of the Palestinian state. We were forcibly ejected from the legislative session, revealing the weak state of what's often portrayed as the "sole democratic state in the region". How can leaders speak about regional peace while declining to recognize a population deprived of basic liberties and entitlements under long-standing occupation?

The Reality in the Occupied West Bank

In no place is the hypocrisy more evident than in the occupied West Bank. There, words of reconciliation sound distant and faint, while the frightening sounds of colonist attacks and intimidation persist strongly. More than 30 occurrences of violence by settlers against Palestinian civilians have been documented since the announcement of the Trump administration's peace proposal in September's end, featuring attacks, theft of agricultural produce, and burning of cars and belongings.

Systematic Violence During Harvest Season

The increase in violence by colonists is not coincidental. This period marks the start of harvest seasons. Beyond a crucial economic event, it constitutes an significant social and national moment that shows endurance under military rule. Precisely for these reasons, annually settlers target Palestinians during this crucial period. During the 2024 harvest season, rights groups recorded 113 separate incidents of violence, harassment, preventing harvesting, or damage to olive trees and produce involving settlers and military personnel, which occurred on lands belonging to 51 Palestinian villages, municipalities, and areas.

Israel's military appeared to have had a larger part in hindering the olive harvest

The human rights group also found that "Israel's security forces appeared to have had a larger part in hindering the olive harvest". In approximately 70% of instances where entry to lands was forcibly blocked, troops, border guards, and settler security officials were physically present. They either personally stopped Palestinian farmers from reaching and gathering their property, or neglected to prevent colonists who threatened or assaulted them.

Political Backing for Settler Activities

This is no surprise, as the leader of the colonists' political movement, Bezalel Smotrich, was appointed as an extra minister in the Ministry of Defence responsible for the territorial coordination unit. In one village, for instance, a particular military coordination team removed private olive trees of local residents, citing missing documentation, but overlooked infractions by an unauthorized nearby colonist encampment. Last week, the Jerusalem district court ruled to halt all building work in the outpost, which was constructed on lands seized by Israel and illegally transferred to settlers.

Takeover Goals and International Reaction

In the controlled West Bank, colonist violence is simply a tool used by the government to achieve practical incorporation. Earlier this month, Smotrich led a procession of thousands of settlers in favor of annexation the West Bank. He was reported as saying, "We are continuing to take hold with our feet of the Land of Israel with numerous settlers, many champions, and hundreds of thousands of colonists who live in this part of the land ... we must to normalise it and establish it permanently."

The settlers and their backers in the parliament are explicit about their intentions and intentions. Why, then, do government officials in the west refrain from meaningful penalties and political actions? Smotrich was sanctioned by the UK in June, but the impact of the sanction has been limited. He may not be permitted to travel to the United Kingdom and visit the West End, but he still enjoys the governmental authority to seize lands in the West Bank. Remarkably in the declaration of sanctions, the British government highlighted they apply "in his personal capacity" solely.

International Recognition and Reality

If the UK government acknowledges the reality of colonist aggression and its grave consequences on Palestinian existence, why does it still allow goods from settlements to be marketed in markets and shops in the UK? If Starmer is serious about acknowledging Palestinian statehood as a state, how can he allow the Israeli government 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 rebranding of some cartographic representations?

Pathway to Genuine Peace

A fair resolution must honor the basic entitlements of the Palestinian population for self-recognition, independence, and liberty from occupation and siege. Only when every human being's worth between the river and sea is honored can we truly say reconciliation has been achieved.

True resolution requires an sovereign Palestinian nation next to the Israeli state: this is the sole solution that enjoises agreement among the global community, the Palestinian national movement, and the Israeli peace advocates.

The former US president may have applied influence on Netanyahu to halt the genocide, but he probably only did so because the strain of his relationship with the isolated government of Netanyahu had become excessive. The mass protests throughout the globe for the liberation of Palestine, and the unwavering anti-government protests inside Israel, are the actual forces behind this pressure.

It is thanks to this massive public campaign that a ceasefire has been agreed, the captives freed, and the people of the territory can experience protection from annihilation. Following the truce arrangement has been finalized, it is crucial to keep applying this pressure. The international community has ignored to the violence in Gaza for many years; it must not repeat the same mistake in the West Bank.