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Last Monday, during a combined address by American leader Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, fellow lawmaker Ayman Odeh and I displayed a sign calling for the recognition of Palestine. We were forcibly removed from the legislative session, revealing the fragile state of what's often described as the "sole democracy in the region". How can officials talk about Middle East peace while declining to acknowledge a population deprived of fundamental liberties and entitlements under decades-long military control?

The Situation in the Occupied West Bank

In no place is the deceit more evident than in the controlled West Bank. There, talk of reconciliation sound remote and weak, while the frightening echoes of settler violence and terror continue loudly. Over 30 occurrences of violence by settlers against Palestinian civilians have been recorded since the unveiling of the Trump administration's 20-point plan in late September, featuring attacks, theft of agricultural produce, and torching of vehicles and belongings.

Targeted Violence During Harvest Season

The increase in settler terrorism is deliberate. This time marks the beginning of agricultural harvesting. More than a vital economic event, it constitutes an significant social and cultural moment that shows resilience under military rule. Precisely for these reasons, year after year settlers target Palestinians throughout this crucial time. During the last year's agricultural season, human rights organizations recorded 113 distinct incidents of violence, harassment, preventing harvesting, or damage to olive groves and produce by Israeli civilians and military personnel, which took place on lands owned by 51 Palestinian communities, towns, and communities.

Israel's security forces appeared to have played a greater role in obstructing the olive harvest

The human rights group also discovered that "Israel's security forces seemed to have played a larger part in obstructing the harvesting season". In approximately 70% of cases where access to farmland was violently prevented, troops, border police officers, and settlement security officials were actually on site. They either personally stopped Palestinians from reaching and gathering their property, or failed to prevent colonists who threatened or assaulted them.

Political Support for Colonization

This is no surprise, as the leader of the colonists' political movement, Bezalel Smotrich, was appointed as an additional minister in the Ministry of Defence in charge of the territorial coordination unit. In Umm al-Khair, for example, a special COGAT unit uprooted personally-owned olive trees of local residents, citing missing documentation, but overlooked violations by an illegal adjacent settler outpost. Last week, the Jerusalem district court ruled to stop all construction in the outpost, which was built on lands seized by Israeli authorities and unlawfully transferred to colonists.

Annexation Goals and International Reaction

In the controlled West Bank, settler terrorism is simply a tool used by the administration to pursue de-facto 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 territory with numerous settlers, many heroes, and hundreds of thousands of settlers who live in this area of the territory ... we need to normalize it and make it eternal."

The colonists 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 political actions? Smotrich was sanctioned by the UK in the summer, but the impact of the penalty has been limited. He may not be able to travel to the UK and tour the London's entertainment district, but he still maintains the governmental authority to take lands in the West Bank. Remarkably in the declaration of sanctions, the British government highlighted they take place "personally" only.

International Acknowledgment and Reality

If the UK government recognizes the reality of settler violence and its serious implications on Palestinian life, why does it still allow settlement produce to be marketed in stores 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 sovereignty with such violent means? Or was the recognition an empty ploy to shut down dissenting voices in the UK, a meaningless gesture only to be realised in the rebranding of some maps?

Pathway to Genuine Peace

A fair resolution must honor the basic rights of the Palestinian people for self-recognition, sovereignty, and freedom from occupation and blockade. Only when each human being's worth between the river and sea is honored can we truly say peace has been attained.

True resolution demands an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel: this is the only formula that enjoises agreement among the international community, the Palestinian leadership, and the Israeli peace advocates.

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

It is due to this massive civil movement that a truce has been signed, the captives released, and the people of Gaza can experience safeguard from annihilation. After the truce arrangement has been signed, it is crucial to continue maintaining this influence. The international community has ignored to the atrocities in Gaza for too long; it must not make the same error in the occupied territories.