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Last Monday, during a joint speech by American leader Donald Trump and Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the Israeli parliament, fellow parliamentarian Ayman Odeh and I displayed a sign urging the recognition of the Palestinian state. We were forcibly removed from the parliamentary assembly, revealing the fragile condition of what's frequently described as the "only democracy in the region". How can officials talk about regional peace while refusing to recognize a population deprived of fundamental liberties and entitlements under long-standing military control?

The Reality in the West Bank

In no place is the hypocrisy more evident than in the occupied West Bank. There, talk of peace seem distant and weak, while the frightening sounds of settler violence and terror continue loudly. Over 30 occurrences of violence by settlers against Palestinian civilians have been documented since the announcement of the Trump administration's peace proposal in late September, including physical assaults, stealing of agricultural produce, and burning of vehicles and property.

Systematic Aggression During Harvest Season

The rise in settler terrorism is not coincidental. This period signals the start of agricultural harvesting. Beyond a vital economic activity, it represents an significant communal and national occasion that demonstrates endurance under military rule. Exactly for these reasons, year after year colonists attack Palestinians throughout this precious period. During the 2024 harvest season, human rights organizations documented 113 distinct cases of violence, harassment, preventing harvesting, or damage to olive groves and produce involving Israeli civilians and military personnel, which took place on territories belonging to 51 Palestinian-owned communities, municipalities, and communities.

Israel's security forces appeared to have had a larger role in obstructing the olive harvest

The human rights group also found that "Israel's security forces appeared to have played a larger part in hindering the harvesting season". In about 70% of instances where access to farmland was violently prevented, soldiers, border police officers, and settler civilian security coordinators were physically present. They either personally prevented Palestinian farmers from accessing and gathering their property, or neglected to stop colonists who harassed or attacked them.

Government 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 Defense Ministry responsible for the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories. In Umm al-Khair, for example, a special COGAT unit uprooted private olive trees of local residents, claiming lack of permits, but overlooked violations by an unauthorized adjacent settler outpost. Last week, the local court decided to halt all building work in the encampment, which was constructed on property taken by Israel and illegally given to settlers.

Annexation Ambitions and International Response

In the controlled West Bank, colonist violence is nothing but a tool used by the administration to pursue practical annexation. Recently, 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 Land of Israel with many pioneers, numerous heroes, and hundreds of thousands of colonists who live in this part of the land ... we need to normalise it and establish it permanently."

The colonists and their supporters in the Knesset are explicit about their intentions and goals. Why, then, do government officials in the Western nations refrain from substantial sanctions and diplomatic measures? Smotrich was sanctioned by the United Kingdom in the summer, but the effect of the penalty has been limited. He may not be able to go to the UK and visit the West End, but he still maintains the ministerial power to seize territories in the West Bank. Even in the announcement of penalties, the UK highlighted they take place "in his personal capacity" only.

Global 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 goods from settlements to be marketed in markets and shops in Britain? If Starmer is serious about acknowledging Palestinian statehood as a state, how can he permit the Israeli government to violate its sovereignty with such aggressive methods? Or was the recognition an empty ploy to silence dissenting voices in the UK, a hollow act only to be implemented in the relabeling of some maps?

Route Toward Genuine Peace

A just peace must honor the basic entitlements of the Palestinian people for self-recognition, sovereignty, and freedom from occupation and siege. Only when each person's worth across the river and sea is honored can we truly declare peace has been attained.

True peace demands an sovereign Palestinian nation next to the Israeli state: this is the sole solution that has agreement among the global community, the Palestinian leadership, and the Israeli peace advocates.

The former US president may have applied influence on the Israeli leader to stop the genocide, but he probably only did so because the strain of his connection with the pariah regime of the Israeli PM had become too great. The large demonstrations throughout the globe for the freedom of Palestinian territories, and the unwavering anti-government protests inside Israel, are the real forces behind this pressure.

It is due to this massive public campaign that a truce has been agreed, the captives released, and the residents of Gaza can experience safeguard from annihilation. After the ceasefire agreement has been finalized, it is vital to continue maintaining this pressure. The international community has ignored to the atrocities in Gaza for many years; it must not make the same mistake in the West Bank.