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Last Monday, amid a joint speech by American leader Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Israeli parliament, colleague lawmaker Ayman Odeh and I raised a banner calling for the recognition of Palestine. We were forcibly ejected from the legislative assembly, exposing the fragile state of what's frequently portrayed as the "sole democratic state in the Middle East". How can officials talk about Middle East peace while refusing to acknowledge a population deprived of basic freedoms and entitlements under long-standing military control?

The Situation in the West Bank

In no place is the hypocrisy more evident than in the occupied West Bank. There, words of peace sound distant and weak, while the terrifying echoes of colonist attacks and intimidation continue strongly. Over 30 incidents of violence by settlers against Palestinian civilians have been recorded since the unveiling of the US peace proposal in late September, including physical assaults, theft of agricultural produce, and torching of cars and belongings.

Targeted Violence During Harvest Season

The increase in settler terrorism is deliberate. This time marks the beginning of harvest seasons. More than a crucial economic activity, it represents an important communal and cultural occasion that demonstrates resilience under military rule. Exactly for these causes, annually settlers attack Palestinians during this crucial time. During the last year's agricultural season, rights groups documented 113 separate cases of aggression, harassment, harvest-thwarting, or destruction to olive trees and crops involving Israeli civilians and military personnel, which occurred on lands belonging to 51 Palestinian villages, towns, and areas.

Israeli security forces seemed to have had a greater role in hindering the olive harvest

Yesh Din also discovered that "Israel's security forces appeared to have played a larger role in hindering the olive harvest". In approximately 70% of instances where access to farmland was violently blocked, soldiers, border police officers, and settler civilian security coordinators were physically present. They either personally prevented Palestinian farmers from reaching and gathering their own lands, or failed to stop colonists who harassed or assaulted them.

Government Backing for Colonization

This comes as no surprise, as the head of the settlers' political party, Bezalel Smotrich, was appointed as an extra official in the Ministry of Defence responsible for the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories. In Umm al-Khair, for instance, a special COGAT unit removed personally-owned olive plants of local residents, citing lack of permits, but ignored violations by an unauthorized adjacent colonist encampment. Last week, the local court decided to stop all construction in the outpost, which was built on property taken by Israel and unlawfully transferred to settlers.

Annexation Ambitions and International Response

In the controlled West Bank, colonist violence is simply a tool used by the administration to achieve practical incorporation. Earlier this month, Smotrich led a procession of many of colonists in favor of annexation the West Bank. He was quoted as stating, "We persist to establish presence with our presence of the Land of Israel with numerous settlers, numerous champions, and countless of colonists who live in this area of the land ... we must to normalize it and make it eternal."

The settlers and their backers in the parliament are explicit about their intentions and intentions. Why, then, do political leaders in the Western nations hesitate from substantial penalties and diplomatic measures? Smotrich was sanctioned by the United Kingdom in the summer, but the impact of the sanction has been limited. He may not be permitted to go to the United Kingdom and tour the London's entertainment district, but he still maintains the ministerial power to seize territories in the West Bank. Remarkably in the declaration of penalties, the British government highlighted they apply "in his personal capacity" solely.

Global Acknowledgment and Actual Situation

If the UK government recognizes the reality of settler violence and its grave consequences on Palestinian life, why does it still permit goods from settlements to be marketed in stores and outlets in the UK? If Starmer is genuine about recognition of Palestine as a sovereign entity, how come he permit the Israeli administration to breach its independence with such violent means? Or was the recognition an hollow ploy to silence opposition in the United Kingdom, a hollow act only to be realised in the relabeling of some cartographic representations?

Pathway to True Resolution

A just resolution must honor the fundamental entitlements of the Palestinian population for self-recognition, sovereignty, and liberty from military occupation and siege. Only when every human being's dignity between the river and Mediterranean Sea is respected can we genuinely declare peace has been attained.

True peace requires an independent Palestinian nation alongside Israel: this is the only formula that enjoises consensus among the global community, the Palestinian national movement, and the Israeli peace camp.

Trump may have applied influence on Netanyahu to stop the genocide, but he likely only did so because the burden of his relationship with the pariah regime of the Israeli PM had become too great. The large demonstrations across the world for the liberation of Palestinian territories, and the unwavering opposition protests inside the country, are the real factors behind this influence.

It is due to this massive civil movement that a truce has been signed, the hostages released, and the residents of the territory can experience safeguard from destruction. Following the ceasefire agreement has been signed, it is vital to continue maintaining this influence. The world has ignored to the violence in the strip for many years; it must not repeat the same error in the West Bank.