As International Attention Stays on the Gaza Strip, Israeli Colonists in the Occupied Territories Continue Acting Without Consequences

Last Monday, 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 raised a banner calling for the acknowledgment of Palestine. We were forcibly removed from the legislative session, exposing the weak state of what's often described as the "sole democratic state in the region". How can officials talk about Middle East peace while declining to recognize a population denied of fundamental freedoms and rights under long-standing military control?

The Situation in the West Bank

In no place is the hypocrisy more apparent than in the occupied West Bank. There, words of reconciliation seem remote and faint, while the frightening echoes of settler violence and intimidation continue strongly. Over 30 occurrences of settler aggression against Palestinians have been recorded since the announcement of the Trump administration's peace proposal in late September, including physical assaults, stealing of agricultural produce, and burning of cars and belongings.

Targeted Violence During Harvest Season

The rise in violence by colonists is not coincidental. This time marks the beginning of agricultural harvesting. More than a crucial economic event, it constitutes an important social and cultural occasion that shows resilience under occupation. Exactly for these causes, year after year colonists target Palestinians during this precious period. During the last year's agricultural period, rights groups documented 113 separate cases of aggression, harassment, preventing harvesting, or destruction to olive groves and crops involving settlers and soldiers, which occurred on lands owned by 51 Palestinian communities, municipalities, and communities.

Israeli security forces appeared to have had a greater role in hindering the harvesting season

The human rights group also found that "Israel's security forces appeared to have had a larger role in hindering the olive harvest". In about 70% of cases where entry to farmland was forcibly blocked, troops, border police officers, and settler civilian security coordinators were physically present. They either directly stopped Palestinians from accessing and gathering their property, or neglected to prevent settlers who threatened or assaulted them.

Political Backing for Settler Activities

This comes as no shock, as the head of the settlers' political party, Bezalel Smotrich, was named as an extra minister in the Ministry of Defence responsible for the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories. In one village, for instance, a special COGAT unit uprooted private olive plants of local residents, citing lack of permits, but ignored infractions by an illegal adjacent settler outpost. Last week, the Jerusalem district court decided to stop all building work in the outpost, which was constructed on property taken by Israeli authorities and illegally transferred to settlers.

Takeover Goals and Global Response

In the occupied West Bank, settler terrorism is simply a tool used by the administration to achieve practical annexation. Recently, Smotrich led a march of thousands of settlers in favor of annexation the West Bank. He was reported as stating, "We are continuing to establish presence with our presence of the territory with many settlers, numerous champions, and countless of colonists who live in this part of the land ... we need to normalize 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 Western nations hesitate from meaningful sanctions and political actions? Smotrich was sanctioned by the UK in the summer, but the impact of the sanction has been minimal. He may not be permitted to travel to the UK and tour the West End, but he still enjoys the ministerial power to take lands in the West Bank. Even in the announcement of penalties, the UK highlighted they apply "personally" solely.

International Acknowledgment and Reality

If the British administration recognizes the reality of colonist aggression and its grave implications on Palestinian existence, why does it still allow settlement produce to be sold in stores and shops in Britain? If Starmer is serious about acknowledging Palestinian statehood as a sovereign entity, how come he allow the Israeli administration to breach its sovereignty with such aggressive methods? Or was the recognition an hollow ploy to shut down opposition in the United Kingdom, a meaningless gesture only to be implemented in the relabeling of some cartographic representations?

Route Toward Genuine Resolution

A just peace must respect the basic rights of the Palestinian people for self-determination, independence, and freedom from occupation and siege. Only when each human being's dignity across the river and Mediterranean Sea is respected can we truly say reconciliation has been attained.

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

The former US president may have applied influence on the Israeli leader to stop the genocide, but he likely only did so because the burden of his relationship with the isolated government of the Israeli PM had become excessive. The mass protests throughout the world for the freedom of Palestine, and the unwavering opposition protests inside Israel, are the actual forces behind this influence.

It is thanks to this enormous civil movement that a truce has been agreed, the hostages released, and the people of the territory can enjoy protection from destruction. Following the ceasefire agreement has been finalized, it is crucial to continue applying this pressure. The world has turned a blind eye to the violence in the strip for many years; it must not repeat the same error in the West Bank.