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Last week, during a combined address by US President Donald Trump and Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, colleague lawmaker Ayman Odeh and I raised a banner urging the recognition of Palestine. We were violently removed from the parliamentary assembly, exposing the fragile condition of what's frequently described as the "only democratic state in the Middle East". How can leaders talk about Middle East peace while declining to recognize a population deprived of fundamental liberties and entitlements under decades-long occupation?

The Reality in the West Bank

In no place is the hypocrisy more evident than in the occupied West Bank. There, words of reconciliation seem distant and weak, while the frightening echoes of colonist attacks and intimidation persist strongly. Over 30 incidents of violence by settlers against Palestinian civilians have been recorded since the announcement of the US peace proposal in late September, featuring attacks, theft of agricultural produce, and burning of vehicles and belongings.

Targeted Aggression During Agricultural Period

The increase in violence by colonists is deliberate. This period signals the start of agricultural harvesting. More than a vital economic activity, it constitutes an significant social and national moment that shows endurance under occupation. Precisely for these causes, year after year settlers target Palestinians during this crucial period. During the 2024 harvest period, rights groups documented 113 separate cases of violence, intimidation, harvest-thwarting, or destruction to olive groves and crops involving Israeli civilians and soldiers, which took place on territories belonging to 51 Palestinian-owned villages, municipalities, and areas.

Israeli security forces appeared to have had a greater part in obstructing the harvesting season

Yesh Din also found that "Israeli military appeared to have had a larger part in obstructing the olive harvest". In approximately 70% of cases where access to lands was forcibly blocked, troops, border police officers, and settlement security officials were physically present. They either directly stopped Palestinian farmers from accessing and harvesting their property, or failed to stop colonists who harassed or attacked them.

Political Backing for Colonization

This comes as no shock, as the head of the settlers' political party, Bezalel Smotrich, was named as an additional minister in the Defense Ministry in charge of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories. In one village, for instance, a special COGAT unit removed private olive plants of local residents, citing missing documentation, but overlooked violations by an illegal nearby colonist encampment. Last week, the local court ruled to halt all building work in the outpost, which was built on lands taken by Israel and illegally given to settlers.

Annexation Goals and International Reaction

In the controlled West Bank, settler terrorism is nothing but a tool used by the government to achieve de-facto annexation. Earlier this month, Smotrich headed a march of thousands of settlers in favor of annexation the West Bank. He was reported as saying, "We are continuing to take hold with our presence of the territory with numerous settlers, many champions, and hundreds of thousands of settlers who reside in this part of the territory ... we need to normalise it and establish it permanently."

The settlers and their supporters in the parliament are explicit about their intentions and goals. Why, then, do political leaders in the west hesitate from meaningful sanctions and political actions? Smotrich was sanctioned by the United Kingdom in the summer, but the impact of the sanction has been minimal. He may not be permitted to go to the UK and visit the West End, but he still maintains the ministerial power to take lands in the West Bank. Even in the declaration of sanctions, the UK emphasized they apply "in his personal capacity" only.

International Acknowledgment and Reality

If the UK government recognizes the reality of settler violence and its grave consequences on Palestinian existence, why does it still allow goods from settlements to be sold in stores and shops in the UK? If the British leader is genuine about recognition of Palestine as a sovereign entity, how come he permit the Israeli government to breach its sovereignty with such violent means? Or was the acknowledgment an empty ploy to shut down opposition in the UK, a hollow act only to be realised in the rebranding of some cartographic representations?

Pathway to True Resolution

A just peace must respect the fundamental entitlements of the Palestinian people for self-determination, sovereignty, and liberty from military occupation and siege. Only when every human being's worth between the Jordan River and sea is honored can we genuinely declare peace has been attained.

True resolution requires an sovereign Palestinian state alongside the Israeli state: this is the only formula that enjoises agreement among the global community, the Palestinian national movement, and the Israeli peace advocates.

Trump may have applied pressure on Netanyahu to stop the genocide, but he likely only did so because the strain of his connection with the isolated government of Netanyahu had become excessive. The large demonstrations throughout the globe for the liberation of Palestinian territories, and the unwavering anti-government protests within the country, are the real forces behind this influence.

It is thanks to this massive civil movement that a ceasefire has been signed, the hostages freed, and the residents of Gaza can enjoy protection from destruction. After the truce arrangement has been finalized, it is vital to continue applying this pressure. The international community has ignored to the atrocities in the strip for too long; it must not repeat the same mistake in the West Bank.