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Last week, during a joint address by American leader Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Israeli parliament, colleague lawmaker Ayman Odeh and I displayed a banner calling for the recognition of Palestine. We were forcibly removed from the parliamentary session, exposing the weak condition of what's often described as the "sole democracy in the Middle East". How can officials talk about Middle East peace while declining to recognize a population denied of basic freedoms and rights under long-standing military control?

The Reality in the West Bank

In no place is the hypocrisy more evident than in the controlled West Bank. There, talk of reconciliation sound remote and faint, while the frightening echoes of colonist attacks and terror continue loudly. Over 30 occurrences of settler aggression against Palestinian civilians have been documented since the unveiling of the Trump administration's peace proposal in September's end, including physical assaults, theft of agricultural produce, and burning of vehicles and property.

Systematic Aggression During Agricultural Period

The increase in violence by colonists is deliberate. This time marks the beginning of agricultural harvesting. More than a crucial economic event, it represents an significant social and national occasion that demonstrates endurance under occupation. Precisely for these reasons, annually colonists attack Palestinian farmers during this crucial time. During the 2024 harvest period, human rights organizations recorded 113 separate incidents of aggression, harassment, harvest-thwarting, or damage to olive trees and produce by Israeli civilians and military personnel, which took place on territories belonging to 51 Palestinian villages, municipalities, and areas.

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

Yesh Din also found that "Israeli military seemed to have played a greater part in hindering the olive harvest". In about 70% of instances where entry to farmland was forcibly prevented, troops, border police officers, and settler security officials were physically present. They either personally prevented Palestinian farmers from reaching and gathering their own lands, or neglected to stop settlers who harassed or assaulted them.

Government Backing for Colonization

This comes as no surprise, as the leader of the settlers' political party, Bezalel Smotrich, was named as an additional official in the Ministry of Defence responsible for the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories. In Umm al-Khair, for example, a particular military coordination team removed personally-owned olive trees of local residents, claiming lack of permits, but overlooked infractions by an unauthorized nearby colonist encampment. Last week, the Jerusalem district court decided to halt all construction in the encampment, which was built on property taken by Israel and illegally given to settlers.

Annexation Ambitions and Global Response

In the occupied West Bank, settler terrorism is simply a instrument used by the administration to achieve de-facto incorporation. Earlier this month, Smotrich headed a procession of many of colonists in support of annexation the West Bank. He was quoted 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 reside in this area of the land ... we must to normalize it and make it eternal."

The settlers and their supporters in the Knesset are clear about their intentions and goals. Why, then, do government officials in the Western nations hesitate from substantial penalties and political actions? Smotrich was sanctioned by the United Kingdom in the summer, but the impact of the penalty has been minimal. He may not be permitted to travel to the UK and tour the London's entertainment district, 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 "personally" solely.

Global Recognition and Reality

If the UK government acknowledges the truth of colonist aggression and its grave consequences on Palestinian life, why does it still permit settlement produce to be marketed in markets and shops in the UK? If Starmer is genuine about recognition of Palestine as a sovereign entity, how come he permit the Israeli government to violate 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 rebranding of some maps?

Pathway to Genuine Peace

A just resolution must respect the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people for self-recognition, sovereignty, and freedom from occupation and blockade. Only when each human being's dignity across the Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea is respected can we genuinely say reconciliation has been attained.

Genuine resolution demands an sovereign Palestinian state next to the Israeli state: this is the sole solution that has agreement among the international community, the Palestinian leadership, and the Israeli peace camp.

The former US president may have inflicted pressure on Netanyahu to stop the violence, but he likely only did so because the strain of his relationship with the isolated government of Netanyahu had become too great. The mass protests across the globe for the liberation of Palestine, and the persistent anti-government protests within the country, are the real forces behind this influence.

It is due to this enormous public campaign that a ceasefire has been signed, the hostages freed, and the residents of Gaza can enjoy safeguard from destruction. After the truce arrangement has been finalized, it is vital to keep maintaining this pressure. The international community has turned a blind eye to the atrocities in Gaza for many years; it must not make the same mistake in the West Bank.